Hailie Tebo

Love is something that everyone can practice and benefit from.

When senior Rosary Wever was watching Love Island last summer, she found herself relating to the winner of the show. The popular franchise portrayed people with similar viewpoints to hers, and with that came an easier way to identify exactly who she was.

“I feel a lot like Amaya Papaya,” Rosary said. “She’s a sensitive gangster, and I’m a sensitive gangster too. I think [it’s important to be] nice to others—being kind [to each other], showing support, and being there.”

Starting from there, Rosary blossomed. As someone who never particularly adored high school, relating to plenty of others who share a likewise experience, there was always a piece of her that wanted to give. The value of love remains at the top of her scale; to share all that she has in her heart is a gift. In a world of those who want to hide this secret superpower, she remains the outlier.

“I don’t think loving someone is ever a waste,” Rosary said. “I love love, and I say that all the time. I’m a very emotional and sensitive person, so I think it’s very on brand for me to be a loving person.”

Her fondness for others stemmed from the personal experiences that she’s seen throughout the entirety of her life. After moving from Panama at the age of seven, she’s grown up to witness lots of cultural differences that many do not experience. The beauty of a diverse perspective offered up the idea of loving other people to the best of her ability. Since moving to where she is today, she’s realized that there’s a slight difference between herself and some of her peers. A majority of this has to do with how her culture shows the love of its people.

“Latinos have a very special way of loving other people,” Rosary said. “I always say that [we’re] doers and not sayers.”

Showing up for others remains another key aspect in what Rosary believes to be the most important. Just like the idea of love, being there and supporting friends or family means more than anything. Being truthful in your actions builds relationships faster than any other way.

Earlier this year, she went to a friend’s tennis match that multiple of her own friends said they would go to. When showing up to the event, she realized that almost all of the very people who mentioned they would come didn’t. This small memory echoed through her mind, with the significance of it changing how she thought. She would always be the one to see the tiny achievements, events, and moments in others’ lives. It’s her expression of love.

“I think showing up for people, especially the people that are important to you and [who] you love, is so important,” Rosary said. “Yes, [sometimes it can be hard], but you’ll do it for somebody you truly love.” 

Another influential moment in her life, interesting enough, was reading TikTok poetry. Writing has always stuck out to Rosary, and she even took Writing for Publication her junior year. Poetry truly spoke to her as a way to express emotions that are so complicated in the form of stanzas and metaphors. It taught her new ways of thinking, even just as something she saw on social media.

“Poetry is such a beautiful way of putting love into words,” Rosary said. “There are so many poems about love and loss and all these things. I saw one about grief, and I think that’s really interesting since grief is just love that you can’t express [anymore]. That’s what TikTok poetry made me realize.”

Grief—an obscure emotion that most, if not every person, has experienced—holds a person’s regrets of the love they couldn’t give to someone who has now passed. Through the simplicity of TikTok poems and things she’d been told when she was young, Rosary found herself refusing to let any of her love go to waste. It had been repeated and repeated to her that there’s only so much you can do, so you should do absolutely everything you can.

“I’m only on this earth for so long,” Rosary said. “And I think that’s an idea that gets implemented into your brain from such a young age—that you only have ‘X’ amount of years on this earth. So why not love as many people as you can?”

As she moves closer to the end of high school, Rosary wants to continue this passion for spreading love wherever she goes. By getting a major in elementary education and her masters in social work, she wants to change the lives of the people she will work with. It’s more than just a job for her.

“When it comes to [my major and master’s], I just know that there are so many kids out there that might not feel loved in their homes,” Rosary said. “So I would [be happy] to be the one who shows them that.”

Rosary is confident in herself. She knows what she likes and supports the people around her. Her avid obsessions with Taylor Swift, food, and all things “girly” are things she’s happy to speak about, and they’re not something to be ashamed of. She practices exactly what she preaches, along with loving others absolutely.

“Just be confident and never change yourself for anybody, because whoever you’re supposed to be is who you’re supposed to be, and you’re the most perfect person ever,” Rosary said.