Miriella Jiffar

Miriella Jiffar
Author

(she/her/hers)

Miriella is a second year planning to double major in English and Cognitive Science. When she’s not writing for the Cavalier Daily’s Life section or working on the Fralin Student Engagement Council, she loves to practice yoga, constantly tell her friends about her plans to travel Europe, and sing along to ABBA! Miriella adores books, and is currently attempting to finish War and Peace, which she thinks is one of the best books she has read so far. 

(headshot credit @graceconstellation)

 

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4 p.m. January 21st. An unassuming, relatively normal Saturday afternoon. The day I finally decided to cut off all my hair. 

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My fluttering feet had splashed up into the air–suspending, if just for a moment–in that beautiful, blissful moment when an overwhelming sea of blue rushed and rippled over my streamlined body as I swam in my neighborhood pool.

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Amidst the positive reception of the HEAAL tours, there are still some questions left unanswered. 

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Aethiopia, Abyssinia, Askum, Kush
All names thrown around by history books, by scholars 
Attempting to intellectualize, rationalize, standardize 
the place my parents call home 

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For first-year students, these historical tours are a vital step to understanding the place they will be inhabiting for the next four years.

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In their first year, seven members of the class of 2023 — Kyndall, Amanda, Chloe, Dianna, Ephrata, Ida and Abena — took a historical tour as part of a requirement for one of their classes, the genesis of what would become the HEAAL tours for first-year students three years later. 

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Let’s start with a story. The routine was like clockwork. My La La Land “City of Stars'' themed alarm would blare at 6:30am.

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Self-governance has the potential to cultivate ingenuity, trust and leadership among the student body at the University. 

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This article was written during the Spring 2022 semester, but was never published.

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Every so often, there tends to be an aesthetic or trend that dominates the online algorithm.

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As the leaves change color – gently falling in the late summer breeze, clinging to the humid days of August – and classes start to begin again, I’ve come back to UVA this year intending to make Charlottesville my own.