Monday, March 30, 2020 - 6
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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

An ode to Michigan wolverines

PHOTO ESSAY

“Can you edit a photo of 

the Big House empty?”

As a photo editor, that’s 

not a normal question to get 

asked. A picture of a Maize 

out at Yost? Sure, we have 

that. Protests on the Diag? 

Of course. But an empty 

stadium, let alone the Big 

House? Well that just isn’t 

in the job description.

I spent all night looking 

through the archives of 

Daily photos trying to find 

one, but the task was nearly 

impossible. Thousands and 

thousands of photos, yet 

not a single one of an empty 

Big House. Every photo was 

saturated with life. With 

maize and blue crowds, 

rally 
towels, 
sunglasses, 

posters, etc. From Crisler to 

Yost to the Big House, all I 

could find was pictures of 

beaming students, proud to 

be a Michigan Wolverine.

Stadiums should be full of 

an obnoxiously loud student 

section and a marching 

band that plays the Victors 

Song three times in a row 

but it never getting old. Fists 

should be punching through 

the air as the crowd dances 

to the Blues Brothers song 

during the final period of 

each game. Mr. Brightside 

should be blasting through 

the speakers as students 

jump through the bleachers, 

not knowing the Killers 

would retweet this ordinary 

rite. 
Traditions 
show 

these stadiums should be 

anything but empty. 

It’s 
not 
just 
the 

stadiums. It’s the theaters 

too. 
The 
restaurants. 

The 
auditoriums. 
The 

classrooms. 
It’s 
working 

hard at rehearsal every night 

just to see a performance 

get 
cancelled. 
Spending 

hours in the UGLI on a 

presentation just to deliver 

it via a computer screen. 

Dedicating every day of the 

semester to the Daily and 

the newsroom just to see 

the paper not get printed. 

It’s a lot of heartbreaking 

disappointment. But this 

disappointment 
doesn’t 

take away from the hard 

work, the late nights or the 

dedication.

Here we are, spending 

what may be our final days 

of the semester and school 

year on an almost empty 

campus. In the midst of this 

chaos, a lot of us have taken 

the time to reflect back on 

the year, scanning through 

old photos and posting them 

to Instagram or Facebook. 

It’s devastating to see it 

come to this abrupt halt 

as some say their final 

goodbyes. 
As 
someone 

who works every day to 

capture these moments on 

campus, I decided to try and 

summarize this past year 

via photos. I know it’s not 

quite the closure we were 

all hoping to get out of this 

year, but I’m hoping it will 

serve for something.

So Wolverines, through 

the lens of my camera 

and that of several Daily 

photographers, 
I 
invite 

you to take a look back at 

this past year. Full of joy, 

tears and lots of late nights. 

COVID-19 may have cut 

our time short, but let’s not 

forget how lucky we are to 

be a Michigan Wolverine. 

Let’s begin with one of 

Michigan’s obvious pride 

and 
joys: 
sports. 
Those 

warm 
summer 
Saturday 

afternoons spent in the 

Big House or cold winter 

walks to Crisler are some 

of 
everyone’s 
fondest 

memories. 
From 
beating 

Notre Dame in the pouring 

rain to snagging the Paul 

Bunyan Trophy, yet again, 

it was an exciting season 

for football (that is, up until 

November 30th, but we 

won’t talk about that). 

ALLISON ENGKVIST

Managing Photo Editor

We 
watched 
a 
new 

basketball team take the 

court and kick off the season 

by winning the Battle 4 

Atlantis tournament. Yes, 

the season had its ups and 

downs, but don’t let that take 

away from the highlights. 

We beat Michigan State 

in Crisler and witnessed 

Juwan 
Howard’s 
first 

season as head coach. 

And of course, Michigan 

Hockey 
had 
a 
strong 

season as well. We made 

it to the semifinals in the 

Big Ten Tournament and 

who 
knows, 
maybe 
we 

would have won. It’s also 

worth noting that we beat 

Michigan State in football, 

basketball 
and 
hockey 

this 
year...something 
to 

definitely remember.

Beyond sports, we were 

fortunate to have some 

interesting speakers visit 

campus. Politics aside, it’s 

always unique to have the 

opportunity to listen to 

some of these speakers. How 

many other universities had 

Bernie Sanders on their diag 

or Hillary Clinton in their 

auditorium? Ann Arbor and 

Detroit are big campaign 

stops for the presidential 

candidates, meaning we get 

to see everything up close. 

Plus, next fall Crisler won’t 

just be for basketball or 

gymnastics--we get to host 

the final presidential debate 

next fall. 

The year was also full 

of 
protests 
and 
rallies. 

From passionate students 

projecting their ideas across 

the Diag to hanging posters 

up in the Union opening, 

people’s voices were heard.

After months of waiting, 

we finally got the Union 

back! Even though it didn’t 

come with the promised 

Panda Express or Taco Bell, 

that’s something to look 

forward to next year. The 

LSA building also had a nice 

renovation and turned into 

a great study spot. And of 

course, Reggie was there to 

bless it during its opening. 

And finally, here are some 

of our favorite spots in Ann 

Arbor. We welcomed Joe’s 

Pizza to its first location 

outside of NYC and have 

worshipped it since. From 

walking through the arb 

to getting a sandwich from 

Zingerman’s, there’s a place 

for everyone in Ann Arbor.

It’s easy to feel empty 

during 
this 
time 
of 

crisis. 
Walking 
around 

campus and seeing empty 

restaurants, 
stores 
and 

libraries. 
Not 
having 
a 

graduation or getting to 

see our best friends once 

more 
before 
next 
fall. 

Our 
traditional 
sense 

of community has been 

completely 
compromised. 

But in these past few weeks, 

I think we’ve created a new 

kind of community. The 

encouragement 
and 
aid 

I’ve seen students offer one 

another is truly incredible. 

People have offered beds 

in their houses, food, cars, 

etc. in a mutual aid sheet 

to ensure that everyone 

is 
safe 
and 
healthy. 

Professors, 
advisors 
and 

peers have reached out 

and offered a shoulder to 

lean on for anyone who 

needs. 
Restaurants 
have 

provided free meals and the 

Maize and Blue Cupboard 

continues to provide food 

for those who need it. 

I’ve seen everyone come 

together to lend a hand and 

that shouldn’t go unnoticed.

Yes, it’s heartbreaking 

not being able to see the 

semester come to the close 

that 
we 
all 
envisioned. 

There’s no bandaid to heal 

that. But seeing this support 

network from my fellow 

classmates, that has to make 

up 
for 
something. 
This 

experience has united us all 

and reminds us how lucky 

we are to be a Wolverine.

