Education Commons^™

Klipsun Magazine, 2022, Volume 52 Issue 03 - Spring, Tyler Brown

Klipsun Magazine

Dear Reader,

When I was given the news that I would be the future editor-in-chief for Klipsun, I knew immediately the theme I wanted for the spring edition.

Passion; (Noun)

1. a strong and barely controllable emotion.

2. an intense desire or enthusiasm for something.

Passion lies within all of us, waiting like a starving beast ready to pounce. Unexpected, unbidden and sometimes unwanted. It stirs, waiting to open its jaws and howl. It guides us. Passion rules us all, and we obey.

If we could live without passion, maybe we’d know some kind of peace. But we would be …

Klipsun Magazine, 2022, Volume 52 Issue 2 - Winter, Victoria Corkum

Klipsun Magazine

Dearest reader,

When I was blessed with the opportunity to be Editor-in-Chief of Klipsun Magazine the little voice in my head whispered with glee, “Now’s your chance to inspire what others need to hear!” Living in a broken world means we are all broken people…but is that such a bad thing? We’re all a little fractured, that’s how the light gets in.

Joy: (noun) An attitude of gladness not based on circumstance; deep-rooted, inspired happiness.

This concept of joy will always receive varying responses. Some smirk at it, not fully understanding the power to be found within. Others hold onto …

Klipsun Magazine, 2021, Volume 52 Issue 1 - Fall, Sadie Fick

Klipsun Magazine

For the reader

These past years have been characterized by uncertainty. If it’s taught me anything, it’s this: We can never really know what’s coming next.

I was hired as a designer for this edition of Klipsun. I didn’t choose the theme or work with reporters to shape their stories. Now I’m Editor-in-Chief.

Sometimes we (knowingly but ungracefully) stumble into new things, as I did. Other times, we take a confident step forward only for the ground shift under us. Through the uncertainty, all we can do is look at where we are and ask ourselves what we’re going to …

Klipsun Magazine, 2021, Volume 51 Issue 3 - Spring, Jaya Flanary

Klipsun Magazine

Hi neighbor,

I lost empathy when I was young and have since spent my time searching for it. Empathy is a capacity that is messy and unnatural; it is a pain in the ass for us selfish folks. My search for it began in high school. Later, in a college literature class, I rediscovered my infatuation for empathy when I read Leslie Jamison’s “The Empathy Exams.”

“This was the double blade of how I felt about any thing that hurt: I wanted someone else to feel it with me, and also I wanted it entirely for myself.”

Considering you and …

Klipsun Magazine, 2020, Volume 51 Issue 01 - Fall, Colton Rasanen

Klipsun Magazine

Dearest readers, This is the section that my predecessors have carved out to write something profound about Klipsun’s theme and the stories you will find with- in. Yet, as I write this, I realize there isn’t anything inherently profound to say about pride. Pride is something most people understand from a young age. Life is filled with proud moments. Pride in education and sports, pride in family and pets, even pride in our ability to meet milestones like talking and walking. As I list all these moments, I wonder why it was so hard for me to feel pride growing …

Klipsun Magazine, 2020, Volume 50 Issue 03 - Spring, Zoe Deal

Klipsun Magazine

For the Reader, The lake is silent on a cool spring morning. As a thick mist rises from the water’s glassy surface, there is a harsh rumble, and a white speedboat rushes through. All that remains, when the buzz fades to an empty echo, is a white-capped trail, rippling, rippling, gone. While the wake of one boat disappears as quickly as it comes into existence, add one, two or 50 more to the mix and, well... just imagine the insurmountable waves. It is not difficult to picture this familiar wake. But to recognize this metaphor on a greater human scale …

Klipsun Magazine, 2020, Volume 50, Issue 02 - Winter, Ray Garcia

Klipsun Magazine

Dear Reader, When we think of the archetype superhero, we often conjure up an image of some perfect, impenetrable being. As humans, the realities we face are seldom that simple. As I reflected on my experiences in journalism thus far, I kept coming back to what I felt made stories both important and compelling – the people at the heart of it all. No matter the topic, there is something inherently captivating about the human experience in that it always drives a component of the article. Otherwise, what would compel us to care? And so, I chose the theme “Superhuman”, …

Klipsun Magazine, 2019, Volume 50, Issue 01 - Fall, Questen Inghram

Klipsun Magazine

Dear reader, Klipsun Magazine has hit the stands for fifty volumes now—it transformed from student yearbook to a storytelling publication during a time of war, civil unrest, uncertainty and an ever-present sense of indignation. Our writers pursued ledes with that feeling at heart. In this issue you’ll read stories about the long fight to renew the college of ethnic studies, one student’s year-long struggle with homelessness, why one man put a dent in his savings to run for city council, how one person has persevered since her sexual assault and more. I would like to personally thank the Klipsun staff, …

Klipsun Magazine, 2019, Volume 49, Issue 04 - Summer, Angela Wissmar

Klipsun Magazine

Dear Reader, I invite you to savor these pages and indulge on the flavors of life within these stories. I invite you to have a large appetite, to bite off more than you can chew, but to finish anyway. I invite you to always leave room for vulnerability, resilience and change, but with joy as the main course. Maybe you’re like me, finally graduating after a victory lap, stumbling on the pressure cooker of, “what’s next”. “Next” is taking risks. Welcoming failure. Knowing when to ask for help. Never settling. Having the courage to try new things. And not ever …

Klipsun Magazine, 2019, Volume 49, Issue 03 - Spring, Kristina Rivera

Klipsun Magazine

Being ourselves takes courage. Courage to be honest and courage to be vulnerable. I chose authenticity as the theme for this issue of Klipsun because I wanted genuine and honest stories. What I received were stories about fighting for identity, what we can learn about ourselves through the lens of cross-cultural psychology, confronting the past to better understand who we are now and more. When we muster up the courage to tell honest, authentic stories like these, it can remind us we’re not alone. Sometimes that’s all we can ask for. When we’re honest with who we are with each …

Klipsun Magazine, 2019, Volume 49, Issue 02 - Winter, Mckenna Cardwell

Klipsun Magazine

As winter extends its icy hold, I often think about life and the journey that lies ahead. There’s something about the frosty mornings and endless grey light that lends itself to self-reflection. If you, like me, find yourself diving into an internal dialogue, you may discover you have an idea of where you want to go, but are caught without a roadmap. Along this path of life, there will be times of uncertainty. Of narrow alleyways you have to pass through in order to get where you’re wanting to go – of passage. But it’s the choices we make during …

Klipsun Magazine, 2018, Volume 49, Issue 01 - Fall, Samantha Frost

Klipsun Magazine

Our roots define who we are. Of course, that definition is loose. Some think of it as our core values, our history or our home. Others interpret it as an unseen network that grounds us and helps us grow. Undeniably, roots shape the stories we must tell. I invite you to explore your definition of roots as you dig into the pages of this magazine. In this collection of stories, you’ll find a struggle for preservation, unlikely friendships, and reflections on our innermost convictions. Each story expresses the countless ways to define roots. We all face trials and tribulations, but …

Klipsun Magazine, 2018, Volume 48, Issue 04 - Summer, Alyssa Evans

Klipsun Magazine

Change is inevitable. Through actions ranging from small to large, change comes upon each of our lives every day. But while change is inevitable, positive change is not. This magazine is dedicated to the changemakers, those who take the time and effort to make positive changes in the lives of others. A changemaker comes in a variety of forms. A childhood that inspired a lifetime of kindness. A high school student who has dedicated their time to activism. A tribe who advocates for safer living conditions of orca whales. All are changemakers. I encourage you to challenge yourself to recognize …

Klipsun Magazine, 2018, Volume 48, Issue 03 - Spring, Rose H. Carr

Klipsun Magazine

Who are you? What qualities of your past have shaped you? What is your essence? Can you recognize the choices you are making now and what they will lead to?

By definition, essence is “the intrinsic nature or indispensable quality of something that determines its character.”

I like to think we make decisions based on what we know will happen indefinitely. When in reality, we are all trying to choose the best choice when life presents itself to us.

The accumulation of gut reactions, late-night turning and days of pensive thinking we’ve made along the timeline of our lives is …

Klipsun Magazine, 2018, Volume 48, Issue 02 - Winter, Trisha Patterson

Klipsun Magazine

When I was a child, my father asked me, “How do you eat and elephant?”

“One piece at a time”, I replied.

This quarter, Klipsun delved into the curiosities that compel us all forward in our journey. Within these pages you will find stories about gritty 80-year-old ultra-runners, personal growth and the familial connections that bind us all together.

Success of any kind is attained through small, nearly unperceivable steps. We don’t always go forward. Sometimes we must step backwards, sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes we explore unexpected roads. That is the nature of any pursuit. It takes courage to …

Klipsun Magazine, 2017, Volume 48, Issue 01 - Fall, Kyra Taubel-Bruce

Klipsun Magazine

If there is one constant we can all expect in life, it is that there will always be change.

These changes, may they be destructive, dividing, didactic or opportune, are what define our future moving forward.

As we go through the motions, we rarely notice the quiet transformation, the metamorphosis of unassuming things from language to our environment and relationships to conversation.

That is the nature of evolution.

Klipsun Magazine, 2017, Volume 47, Issue 03 - Spring, Kjell Redal

Klipsun Magazine

I’d imagine you picked up this magazine for one of two reasons. The first of these is that you have a connection to Klipsun. Maybe you know one of our writers, designers, photographers or editors. Maybe you’ve been in town long enough to recognize the magazine as a mainstay on Bellingham newsstands.

But the other reason you picked it up, and I’d guess the more likely one, is the striking nature of the cover. We are living in a country divided. If there is one thing Americans can agree on following our tumultuous election cycle, it is that. The lines …

Klipsun Magazine, 2017, Volume 47, Issue 02 - Winter, Katherine Misel

Klipsun Magazine

Life is full of the unexpected. We like to think we have it all figured out, predicting and organizing the static nature of our daily lives. Yet, in a mere moment, life can knock the wind out of you and it is suddenly changed forever.

It’s hard to cope with change, especially when it is an undesirable outcome. We are constantly fighting with reality, using our denial as a protective shield. We try to face change head on, but there is rarely an instance in which we can prepare ourselves for life-altering experiences.

In this issue you will find stories …

Klipsun Magazine, 2016 - Fall, Ashe Lambe

Klipsun Magazine

Picture, if you will, a child with matted hair and a sunken lower jaw. Clutched in that child’s hands is a notebook, tattered and filled with sweeping drawings of dragons and the scrawlings of a dreamer.

If you asked that child to write about the real world, a scoff would have followed. “Why would I write about that? It’s boring! ”

As a 10-year-old, I was convinced of this mentality. I had tried writing about myself and I had tried writing about others. Nothing ever stuck. It’s hard to write about others without taking the time to walk in their …

Klipsun Magazine, 2016, Volume 46, Issue 04 - Summer, Amanda Raschkow

Klipsun Magazine

Every day we have the ability to influence others and our surroundings. We share our stories in hopes that we can inspire change and create a conversation. Our stories can be tragic, happy or anywhere in between. But everyone has a story to tell.

As time passes by we realize how the little points in our lives can lead to bigger experiences. We listen to others while they motivate us to express our voices.

In life we may not always know exactly where we are headed but eventually we will find our path. As when the tides on a beach …

Klipsun Magazine, 2016, Volume 46, Issue 03 - Spring, Halee Hastad

Klipsun Magazine

The flowering cherry tree has long symbolized the cyclical nature of life and death. Its blossoms arrive in the spring, delivering their beauty for only a short time. There is a transcendent quality to them, a sense of magic. The Japanese tradition of Hanami has celebrated these trees for more than a millennium and invites people to leave their home or workplace to admire the blossoms and watch them fall. This act is one of honor and regard for the ephemerality of life. It is a practice calling for recognition that as all things begin, thus they too shall end. …

Klipsun Magazine, 2016 - Winter, Halee Hastad

Klipsun Magazine

There exists a value intrinsic to the decisions and actions that we make. A force to promote change and move us forward, into the future.

Decisions lead to acts lead to events and events shape our views of the world. Our frame of reference expands and we are within the human experience.

Please, take a moment and a deep breath. May you be delivered, now and always, to a sense of purpose.

Klipsun Magazine, 2015, Volume 46, Issue 01 - Fall, Leesy Latronica

Klipsun Magazine

If you’ve stood ankle-deep in the ocean, you may know the magic. I remember peering down toward my ankles as waves broke and rolled onto the shore. When the water would retreat, the backwards drag created a distinct floating illusion, as if the ebbing tide was pulling me out to sea along with it.

Or perhaps you’ve seen your share of Bellingham Bay sun­ sets. When the sky shifts and the sun sinks with it, if the right elements align, the diffused light creates a giant scoop of rainbow sherbet melting over the horizon.

The simplest sets of motion can …

Klipsun Magazine, 2015, Volume 45, Issue 05 - Spring, Sigourney Gundy

Klipsun Magazine

I flip through the yellow pages of a navy blue hardcover book titled Klipsun; with each page turn, a musty smell fills my nose. My eyes land on a black and white photo of a tall, dark-haired man in a blazer and I read his name — Dingeman Bajema — my great grandfather. Here, I knew I had found something timeless.

From a yearbook that displayed the life of my great grandfather in 1924, to a features magazine that depicts the lives of people in 2015, Klipsun has maintained a storytelling tradition that captures life in the way it is …

Klipsun Magazine, 2015, Volume 45, Issue 04 - Winter, Carina Linder Jimenez

Klipsun Magazine

One of my favorite novelists, James Joyce, once wrote, “I am tomorrow, or some future day, what I establish today. I am today what I established yesterday or some previous day.” These two sentences speak to the ongoing reality that is a person’s life.

Everyday people are looking forward toward a change or looking back at what they once needed. We live in a world that is perpetually unsatisfied but also entrenched with hope. To reach a world people want to live in they may choose to stand silently in a demonstration, or rush head first and fists crashing into …

Klipsun Magazine, 2014, Volume 45, Issue 03 - Fall, Carina Linder Jimenez

Klipsun Magazine

Thinking back to your childhood, I’m sure each of you has engaged in the simple fun of spinning in a circle. Your feet began shuffling as you pushed yourself to spin rapidly and erratically. Depending on your mood, you either shut your eyes tightly for the rush of possibly colliding or you kept them wide open to experience the thrill of losing focus.

Spinning and spinning. Faster. Now you’ve opened your eyes and continued spinning for a few more seconds.

Unable to maintain your balance, you fell to the ground and stared up at the sky - waiting for your …

Klipsun Magazine, 2014, Volume 45, Issue 02 - Fall, Carina Linder Jimenez

Klipsun Magazine

From the moment you picked up this publication to the time you sat down to read it you have passed someone who has lost a loved one, has achieved a fitness goal, who balances a mental disorder, has aced a final and who is advocating for a cause.

It’s easy to become engrossed in your own story and not realize the thousands of stories similar to your own. We all each achieve, suffer, balance. Whether for humanity, animals, the Earth or ourselves, everyone is forging a path that has and will encounter barriers.

One of my most memorable barriers was …

Klipsun Magazine, 2014, Volume 45, Issue 01 - Summer, Genevieve Iverson

Klipsun Magazine

Klipsun thrives off collaboration. For this issue, 13 staff members and 22 writers were a vital part of the construction of this magazine. With the many unique personalities and ideas involved, our magazine is able to evolve with each issue and share some powerful and delightful stories.

At Klipsun, we believe it is important to incorporate clear words, stunning pictures and relevant, clean design to embody a whole story. Without one element, the others would suffer. Interacting with a story on a more engaged level means spending time absorbing the visuals as well as the words.

By making a magazine, …

Klipsun Magazine, 2014, Volume 44, Issue 05 - Spring, Mindon Win

Klipsun Magazine

What comes to mind when you read the word “grow?” I remember standing against a door frame while one of my parents marked my height with a pencil, each small line showing the passage of time. I think of summers spent pushing the lawnmower over a field of grass that seemed to sprout back overnight. And now, as I write my last of four letters as Klipsun’s editor-in-chief, I consider how I have grown as a person during my time at Western.

College is a place for people to grow into themselves. Students gain a better understanding of the world …

Klipsun Magazine, 2014, Volume 44, Issue 06 - Spring, Genevieve Iverson

Klipsun Magazine

As a child, I spent my summers at the family pond, learning to swim and exploring the shoreline armed with rainbow goggles and a shrimp net. While I loved the florescent wings of the blue and red dragonflies resting on the cattails, I preferred to inspect their green larvae counterparts clinging to the dock pilings beneath the surface of the water. They looked like sleeping insects incased in murky, underwater cocoons. As the summer progressed, the larvae climbed up the pilings into the sunlight. A dragonfly would crawl out, stretching its new wings and fanning them in the air.

The …