Words by: Angel Tully
Art by: Jennifer Hoang

Dearest Esperanto,

I wish I could say it was love at first sight, but to be completely honest, I can’t even remember the first time I set eyes on you.

Only that my first time opening up one of these gorgeous matte magazines was the 2021 Sex Edition – I mean what better welcome is there to the essence of Espy than Sex? Once I had read it cover to cover I placed it neatly on my bookshelf, where it inaugurated a pile of Esperanto Magazines that would continue to grow over the next three years. The only difference – every one since then has had my name in it too.

I always loved English back in school; I loved to be creative, to share ideas and interpretations, to write both freely and analytically. However the latter of those writing styles seemed to be increasingly the only format I was tasked with, especially starting university. The ability to write imaginatively and personally started to drift away. That is until I found you. Esperanto represented a welcoming space where I could write about my own story for once, not interpret someone else’s. And boy, did I enjoy this freedom.

Over the years, I’ve opened up about some heavy topics like love and loss and my tortured cultural identity. I’ve also written about women’s empowerment, the neverending comparison between social media and reality, why gossip is good and why being a pillow princess is queen shit. Each and every one of these pieces has helped me to not only become a better writer, but to put into words the emotions and memories that have shaped me as a human. I feel especially grateful when my words have helped other people feel seen, understood and connected to a part of themselves that perhaps they too didn’t know how to put into words.

Becoming a part of your eclectic community of creatives who are just as passionate about this magazine as I am has absolutely been the best experience to come out of my time at Monash. Moving from a contributing writer, to a sub editor and finally editor this year has offered me perspective from every side of this operation, and has led me to meet so many amazing and inspiring people, ones who I hope to have in my life forever.

This is my final piece for you, Esperanto Magazine. And with that I wanted to share the most important thing that I’ve taken out of this experience. No this isn’t like a cover letter where I brag about some hard skills… In your true Espy fashion, my most important takeaway is much more introspective.

I realised that the accomplishment and pride that I feel seeing my work on the page, and seeing the impact of my words on other people is a feeling that I don’t ever want to give up. Three years ago, I don’t think I knew how much writing and telling important stories really meant to me until now – at the end of my journey with you. So thank you. Thank you for showing me where my passion lies, for showing me what I was meant to be doing and for giving me a platform to be my absolute and authentic self. This may be me signing off from Esperanto, but it is only the beginning of a life of creativity ahead.

Love your loyal reader, contributor and editor,

Angel x