Priceless Gem

By Jordan Mareno

Some people aren’t quite sure of what they want in life.

Some people have a general idea of what they want in life.

Some people know exactly what they want in life and allow nothing to stand in their way. And these individuals often find themselves at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Such is the case for UNC senior, Mariah Akinbi. Set to graduate next month with a B.A. in Chemistry, Mariah has hopes to work in R&D for Procter and Gamble.

The young woman seems unstoppable: Her favorite class at UNC was Organic Chemistry 2, practically unheard of across campus. She picked up gymnastics and joined UNC’s club team with no prior experience. She is heavily involved in Carolina For The Kids and Summit College, works a retail job at Southpoint Mall, and has travelled to both Panama and Honduras on service trips. As I listened to Mariah’s accomplishments, it became clear to me that I, as a first-semester freshman, have only dipped my toes into the opportunities that our campus has to offer. Mariah dove in head first.

Unaffected by the frigid wind that forced the rest of us into fits of shivering, Mariah arrived to her November photoshoot in an elegant black dress. She posed at the Old Well, proudly holding up a “1” and a “5” with her fingers, representing her graduation class.

 

The senior was born in Chapel Hill and represents what it means to be a Tar Heel born and a Tar Heel bred. She experienced college life at UNC the way that we all hope to: She lived on campus for all four of her years as an undergraduate, she rushed Franklin Street in 2014 after the Heels topped the Blue Devils, and she now finds herself sad to leave friendships and memories that she has created. At the same time, she has a powerful degree and an invaluable level of experience to wield in the real world.

The young woman posed for the camera, documenting a time in her life when the hard work had finally paid off. An air of achievement and finality surrounded Mariah and, as I witnessed this aura of accomplishment, I was infused with excitement. My head filled with images of myself in her shoes, four years in the future. Donning the Carolina blue graduation gown is what every Tar Heel aims for. Mariah did it better than anyone.

UNC promises a commanding education and priceless connections within the Carolina community. Mariah Akinbi has just that–and she knows how to use it.

As Mariah led us to the stacks of the Undergraduate Library, shaping her photoshoot to be exactly the way she imagined it, she embodied the ultimate Tar Heel. She placed her foot atop a stack of intimidating chemistry textbooks and proudly smiled. Shimmering in Carolina blue, she had visibly conquered everything that the past four years threw at her.

Nothing will stand in her way.   

Photographs by Shengmei Yin & Leah

Sunshine on Our Minds

It’s hard to believe in the middle of February that there would be days that the temperature rose above the chilling thirties and sat at the warm sixties, but today was one of those rare days and the UNC community took full advantage of the warm afternoon. Walking around, the passerby could see sunbathers, tightrope walkers, collections of Frisbee players and runners all enjoying the sunshine. Pockets of laughter erupted every couple seconds as the community enjoyed a day of comradery and warmth.

It was in this warm atmosphere that I met Ayya and Maha, two sisters eleven and nine respectively, and Noor, nineteen, a close friend of the girls. Ayya, Maha, and Noor are from Iraq and are adjusting to life in America, befriending Jaehee through the Ethnic Ministry at Jaehee’s church, and allowing them to eventually meet me. I was excited to meet Maha, Ayya, and Noor, and although they were timid, they were enthusiastic for this new experience. We met outside the Pit Stop as Maha and Ayya watched the spirited college students walk by, and Noor chatted with Jaehee, Linda and myself—Shengmei, another photographer, was catching up to us after a change in our meeting location. The prevalent happy atmosphere rubbed off on us as we sat down to enjoy ice cream and get to know each other. After challenging Maha and Ayya to an ice cream eating contest, of which I was the victor with Ayya at a close second, we walked around campus laughing and reveling in the warmth of the day. We even got some pictures in before Ayya and I finished our ice cream cones while Jaehee finished Maha’s.

Noor, a current student at Durham’s Technical College and a soon-to-be Tar Heel in the Dental Hygiene program, was thrilled to be on campus. Once the camera came out and the posing began, Noor began to model for Jaehee and Shengmei. Exuberant and confident, her personality showed in her poses and through the pictures captured by the photographers. Her sisterly affection toward Maha and Ayya was revealed as she navigated the occasional language barriers and herded the girls and myself, trying to keep us out of trouble. Together, they posed in front of a number of UNC landmarks, becoming fast-studies at modeling for the cameras.

Uncertain at first, Maha and Ayya soon lost their camera-shy expressions and quickly began pouting for the camera, running over afterwards to see the results of their modeling. Laughter spread as we organized picture after picture around Wilson library and the quad in front with all of the college students lounging about and taking advantage of the glorious afternoon. Talking with Maha and Ayya was bittersweet for the Lens team because as much as they like America, it was obvious they missed their home. When Linda asked whether Maha liked America, Maha replied no, saying it wasn’t as beautiful as Iraq. As the afternoon progressed, Maha gave us descriptions of her homes, both old and new, expressing equal parts happiness at the novelty of America and sadness at the beauty left behind in Iraq.

 

As Ayya, Maha and I quickly became friends, an impromptu chemistry lesson began around the Old Well where the water collected in the basin of the fountain. After playing with the water collected in the bowl as Ayya and Maha looked on with confused expressions, I taught them about surface tension and how the water pushed at your hand, resisting as you tried to submerge your hand in the water. Ayya was skeptical at first and I had already lost Maha to the more interesting camera, but I showed her just how much pressure to apply to the surface of the pool and she was amazed, either that I was right or that the water actually resisted her hand. She and I played with the fountain a while longer before Linda asked what we were doing and Ayya rushed to explain what she had learned. After girls were finished with their pictures, a game of tag erupted as Jaehee posed with Noor around the Old Well. We ran across the grounds of the quad screaming and giggling, Linda calling after us like a mother hen, “Don’t go too far!” Of course, I was still ‘it’ when it was time for them to leave, not being able to catch my much faster and younger friends. Giggling erupted in the group as we wove through the adults trying not to interrupt, but also trying not to be the notorious ‘it.’ After giving hugs and successfully transferring my ‘it’ status to Maha and Ayya, we parted, hoping to see each other soon.