Nov. 15, 2005

Webster's dictionary defines family as "a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation." I believe that an additional definition should be included: the Bucknell Women's Rowing Team. This team has definitely become a family for each one of us who has been lucky enough to be a part of it. It is hard to imagine what life would be like away from home without a group that I knew I could trust and turn to in hard times.

It is now time to add to our family, with the incorporation of the novices with the varsity for winter training, and eventually the spring racing season. Seeing so many new and enthusiastic faces during our morning practices is very encouraging. It was hard last year for me, as a novice, to imagine the team any differently from when it was then. I now realize that the team is evolving every year, throwing new personalities into the mix, inevitably enhancing the team and making us stronger. These personalities may be bubbly and energetic, or more calm and subdued, but each adds a unique dynamic to the team that makes it the family that it is.

I am looking forward to getting to know all of our new teammates and family members in the coming weeks, and am eager to see where the spring racing season will lead us. To imagine that things can only improve for our team from this point is an incredibly exciting thought, and I can't wait until we get to the spring so we can show off just how amazing we will be!

-Amy Van Nostrand '08