Features

The fault in our scars

Chase Gornbein and Claire Quigley • March 28, 2014

Over the years, a body becomes a sort of historical document, imprinted with certain dramatic moments that, without the physical reminder of a scar, might otherwise be forgotten.

Almost all Staples students have some sort of scar on their body, serving as a tangible reminder of a distant memory.

Centuries ago, warriors showed off their scars from battles as symbols of their bravery; but today, scars can often be the result of a complicated medical procedure, thus less celebrated. Although the ways in which people obtain their scars have evolved over time, the memories associated with them have always remained significant.

Senior Lauren Raifaisen got her scar when she was 10-years-old, in a desperate attempt to prove she was tough enough to play with her older sisters. According to Raifasen, her siblings loved to scooter around their marble countertop but would never let her try it with them, until one day, when she capitalized on a rare opportunity to prove her strength.

“They were upstairs, so I tried it, and of course, I hit my head on the counter and had to get stitches,” Raifaisen said.

Although she was unsuccessful at conquering the scooter, Raifaisen loves to tell the story of how she got her scar. “I love when people ask me about it. I’m not crazy about having a scar right on my face but I’m lucky that I can laugh about the way that I got it,” she said.

Some students, like Halle Foster ’16, have so many scars that they often forget about them. Foster has four noticeable scars: one above her lip, one above her eyelid, one above her eyebrow, and one in the back of her head. Foster laughs about her multitude of scars, and sees herself as somewhat of a klutz.

“For the one above my lip, I was going on this mini scooter at my friends house and my mom came to pick me up and I’m like mom look! And then I hit a curb and flew and oops,” Foster said.

Other students, however, are not as comfortable with discussing their scars. In these cases, students view their scars as imperfections.

One student who would like to remain anonymous is uncomfortable with his scar because it triggers an upsetting memory.

“I got a scar on my forehead in 7th grade. Some kids and I were playing with airsoft guns and one kid sniped me out and hit me directly where my mask wasn’t covering. To this day I still have the scar,” the student said.

About the Contributors

Chase Gornbein, Staff Writer

Chase Gornbein ’16 is always looking to push and challenge himself. He likes to test his mental and physical strength whenever possible.

Usually, Gornbein finds his fill of thrill in taking his running to the next level on the track (like with his unreal under-five-minute best mile time). Not only does he enjoy the difficulty of running, but the relaxation it brings along as well.

“I enjoy running because I have the ability to release all of my emotions and let it out on the track,” Gornbein said.

Another way that Gornbein has recently decided to do this is by writing for Inklings. He compares letting his emotions out by running to letting off steam by writing, the only difference being that the track has become the pad of paper.

“I always loved reading the school paper and thought it’d be a really unique experience to try writing for it,” he said.

Although this is his first year as an official Staff Writer, his career actually debuted last year with a story about a Staples student auditioning for “The Voice.”

Although he started simple, Gornbein’s big dream is to be a journalist for the New York Times.

He hopes that the skills he has developed through challenging himself in running will carry into his writing.

For example, Gornbein says that the discipline he has acquired from running has helped him to “stick to a structure and be organized” in writing. He hopes that his mastered discipline will work to his advantage in someday obtaining a job writing for the New York Times.

Claire Quigley, Opinions Editor

Claire Quigley ’14 is an opinions editor on Inklings Newspaper. She has many hobbies that include dance, lacrosse, and is an active member of many clubs. Claire’s main focus for the past three years has been giving back to both her own community, and others as well. She has been apart of her church’s youth club for almost three years with many of her friends. This past summer, she had the amazing opportunity to help the less fortunate in the Dominican Republic. Claire and her youth group helped build houses, and teach many children who do not have the opportunity for an education speak English. “Those 10 days changed my life, I felt great each and every day because I knew I was making a difference.” said Quigley ’14. Aside from traveling to the Dominican, Claire and her youth group have also helped locally around Connecticut. She has helped build gardens, feed the homeless, and raise money for causes she believes in. She has put in many hours towards her youth group, and truly believes they are helping the world one project at a time. Besides Claire being a part of her youth group outside of school, she also enjoys writing both outside and inside school. This year Claire will be finishing her third year on Inklings and is excited to write many articles for both the paper and the web. Claire’s favorite article she wrote was “Where do I upload my Pictures?”