We acknowledge Farrago is created on land that always has and always will belong to the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation. This land is stolen and sovereignty was never ceded, and no acknowledgement is enough to give it back. We pay respect to elders past, present and emerging, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people who have been sharing stories and making art longer than anyone in the world. We thank readers for picking up our magazine and listening to what we have to say, and urge you to actively seek out, and listen to, the people whose land you exist on too.

This is our last edition? God, we genuinely can’t believe how fast the year has gone by. It honestly feels like we were elected only a couple of months ago, and yet here we are about to hand over to your incredible 2020 editorial team: Bethany Cherry, Amber Meyer, Sarah Peters and Tharidi Walimunige. Farrago is in safe hands with these angels, we can’t wait to see what fresh directions they take it in!

We have a lot of feelings about our terms ending and not a lot of space on this page, but here’s the gist:

Ruby—Where do I even start? Being an editor has been the most fucking stressful and rewarding experience of my life so far. It’s been a privilege and a pleasure to read the myriad of vastly different voices coming out of our student body. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who submitted creative writing to Farrago and Above Water this year—your words will stay with me forever. And so many hugs and thanks to my amazing co-editors, subediting team and columnists.

Steph—What a fucking year—I can barely remember my first day on the job because I’ve grown and learnt so much. What an experience it has been to edit and publish your work, and I have an infinite amount of gratitude that I cannot even begin to describe. Thank you to my co-editors for everything everything everything; thank you to my news team for the dedication and determination you have shown (and for having a rant with me in the office once in a while); thank you to all of the people of colour who have stepped up and bravely put your work forward and made the collective a more colourful place. And thank you so much to every single one of you who have written and read and dedicated time to this incredible publication.

Caro—This year has been a whirlwind—looking through editions one to seven this year I’m blown away by the outstanding artists I’ve had the joy of working with. An insane amount of talent and dedication is here on the pages of Farrago and I’m bursting with pride for what we’ve achieved together. This role is chaotic but you, the readers, my fantastic graphic contributors and my crazy, supportive, creative co-editors have made this an incredible experience. Student media is a force to be reckoned with and I urge you to throw yourself in! There’s so much to learn and we are stronger for hosting a diversity of voices. Take a look at the back page for details on getting involved next year! (Also follow me on Instagram for future shenanigans @carolynhuane) xo

In our final news section, read about what academic freedom means for trans people on campus on page 12, or dive into Sonja Repetti’s rant about tutorials on page 16. And in nonfic, check out Emma Hardy’s piece about her experience dating men for money on page 24, and Chelsea Rozario’s breakdown of why it is really not okay to describe someone as ‘exotic’ on page 40.

As always, this edition is absolutely bursting with brilliant pieces of creative writing. Head to page 50 to read Luoyang Chen’s fun poetry spread about Meditation and Cooking Words, and to page 59 to be lulled into another state of meditation by Naomi Sepiso’s gorgeous piece ‘R ‘n’ R’. Equally as brilliant as the words in the creative section are the artworks accompa- nying them—especially Esme Wang’s wild swirly whirly piece on page 48 and Yushi Wu’s adorable rambutans on page 37.

2019 has been one hell of a journey, and we’re so grateful for the experience and everyone who has been a part of it. We love you to the moon and back.

Until we meet again,
Ruby, Steph and Caro