Before joining JCL, I was familiar with the JCL torch. I somewhat understood what it represented. The true meaning of the metaphor came to me at the final General Assembly at Nationals. State delegates from Ohio passed a physical torch to delegates from North Dakota. As I watched, I thought. This physical torch was not the only flame that our JCL creed describes. Each time we learn about classical history or study poets such as Ovid or Virgil, we tend their flames. With a spark in every JCLer, a cumulative flame creates the JCL torch.
I invite all new Latin students to join JCL and keep the torch burning. No matter who you are, JCL has something for you. Get involved and try something new! What you get out of your JCL experience results from what you put into it. JCL has made such a huge impact on my life. I've found a home. I'm free to completely be myself and 'nerd out' over art, history, and even mythology with others.
It’s time for you to put yourself out there. Step a little bit out of your comfort zone. Make your own treasured memories. Enjoy the JCL for as long as you can, and remember to keep the torch burning.
Laila Abolfathi is a sophomore at University High School. This is her second year taking Latin, and she loves studying Roman Culture and Mythology and playing Certamen. On her free time, she likes to cook, sing, and volunteer. She spent this past summer playing water polo with her high school team, and volunteering as a swim coach for her neighborhood team.
None of the kids competing for a spot on the novice team lived within 200 miles of me. Most of them went to Saint Ignatius and became some of my closest friends. Two of the other delegates attended my school's "rival JCL", Miramonte. Our coach postponed the playoffs for the state team until ten. However, rather than cramming, we instead decided to go grab a quick breakfast together. I anticipated that Certamen would be at least mentioned over breakfast. To my surprise, the focus of the conversation was instead the high quality of the chocolate milk. After that, we spent every meal together.
That week, it seemed that anywhere I went on campus, people were overtly friendly. One such occurrence has stuck with me. One day, I needed to find where the pool was. As I stood, puzzling over the map, someone called. “Hey! Looking for the pool?” I turned around and saw three Texan girls. The tallest introduced herself. I smiled. “I’m Laila.” She then gestured to the shorter girl. “This is Lizzy, but we call her Baby, because she's the baby of our group.” After introductions, the girls helped me make sense of the map. Once we deciphered it, they even offered to walk me to the pool, which was a mile away.
As we walked to the pool, we swapped stories as though we had known each other for ages. Four days later, we saw each other, and still remembered each other's names.
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