01/04/2026
It’s hard to let go but I have to.
I didn’t expect this to hurt this much. I thought I would be ready, that I could just write a simple goodbye and walk away. But how do you say goodbye to something that became your voice, your comfort, your escape?
The ANHS ECHO was never just a publication to me. It was where I poured every doubt, every fear, every piece of myself I didn’t know how to express anywhere else. It was where I learned to be strong even when I felt like breaking, to lead even when I was lost, to speak even when my voice was shaking.
There were nights I cried in silence, questioning if I was enough. There were days I carried the weight of everyone, trying to be the leader they needed while quietly falling apart. But still I stayed. Because this meant everything to me.
To my team… you were never just staff. You were the reason I kept going. Thank you for trusting me even when I struggled to trust myself. Thank you for staying, for trying, for believing. Every story we wrote, every page we finished it carried pieces of our hearts.
To our advisers, Ma'am Peache Nadenne Bayasca and Ma'am Zeña Quitco, and to our mentors, thank you for seeing something in me that I couldn’t see in myself. Thank you for your patience, your guidance, and for holding me together in ways you may not even realize.
To the next Editor-in-Chief.
This role will break you before it builds you. There will be moments you’ll feel alone, moments you’ll want to give up but don’t. Stay. Fight for your team. Fight for the truth. Lead not because you have the title, but because you have the heart to carry it. This publication will change you, just like it changed me so take care of it, and let it take care of you too.
To the new writers, I know you’re scared. I was too. You’ll doubt your words, compare yourself, feel like you’re not good enough but please don’t stop. Write anyway. Write through the fear, through the uncertainty, through everything. Because one day, you’ll realize your voice matters more than your doubts ever did.
And now here I am, writing the last piece I’ll ever write as Editor-in-Chief.
I’m not ready. I don’t think I ever will be.
But it’s time.
So this is me, letting go of the title even if I’m still holding on to everything it gave me.
Thank you The ANHS ECHO for choosing me, because I will always choose you.
This is Lymar B. Trinidad, Editor-in-chief and News writer of The ANHS ECHO, signing off.
