Things that make us angsty, sad, infuriated, devastated, and eventually despondent have always existed. But it is easy to become disenchanted and cynical with the present and the current state of the world, especially at an age where these perennial struggles are particularly magnified to us. The Doomsday Clock hasn’t been closer to metaphorical midnight until this year, and some say democracy is dead. Apocalyptic anxieties drench our generation, and we are intertwined with heightened cynicism stemming from the accessibility of the world’s pains to the average person. 

Shockingly, this is a note in celebration of The Varsity’s annual Love & Sex issue. Whether you’re reading this note off of a paper left on a coffee table or standing next to our stands across campus, I hope you know this issue is a sign of hope. The people who contribute and write for our paper are all students at U of T. Despite all of what is happening in the world, students ponder on, grapple with, and exude love. Every article and visual pitch we’ve received has been a testament to how much love has conquered students’ lives and consciences. It seems to me love always wins. 

2024 Nobel Prize in Literature recipient Han Kang said during her Nobel Lecture that, upon tracing back on her 31 years of writing full of pain and the darkest histories of South Korea, she now realized that “love was in fact [her] life’s oldest and most fundamental undertone.” I see similarities in our generation of students too. This issue is a celebration of you — who, while exhausted and terrified of what comes next, tirelessly loves.