If you have noticed anyone new this semester, you may have seen junior William Aiden Carrasco Cooper, or “WACC.” However, WACC is not a new student, he is a returning student. “I went up to Maine to play AAA hockey with the Maine Moose,” he says. “I wanted to try out to see if I wanted to continue to play hockey.” WACC has been playing competitive hockey for nine years, but after a semester with the Maine Moose, WACC says that he “realized that it became more like a job. I knew that it would, and I thought I could handle that, but as soon as I started to realize that, I started to resent playing. It became more like a chore and something that you didn’t want to wake up and do.” While WACC partially expected hockey to go from a hobby to a job, he was also disappointed with the community he found in Maine. “I thought that the Maine Moose would be a family, but you’re kind of by yourself. No one is really there for you like they are there at Seabury. The coaches are not your friend. They are really distant … It felt like it was never home, unlike [Seabury] where it feels like its family.”

WACC was happy to get back to Seabury, but he was also nervous. “I was originally worried that people wouldn’t want me back, but it felt really good and everyone was very welcoming. I missed the atmosphere here; I liked it. I [didn’t] like the atmosphere up in Maine.” While WACC has smoothly re-adjusted into the Seabury community, he’s had difficulty catching up with its academics. “Online school was not my jam,” he says. “So I got back here and the teachers have been really helpful to get caught up … I want to be smart, and I want to further my life.”

WACC hopes to continue to play hockey, but after a semester of an all consuming season, he hopes to broaden his horizons. “I haven’t figured out my calling yet,” he says.