Zainab Salam
Finding beauty in ordinary nature
November 11, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor Driving up Burnaby Mountain the other day, I was engulfed by a sense of awe at the scenery that surrounded me. The sight of the yellowing leaves dotted with raindrops that sparkled like tiny jewels. And the alluring sheen cast by the fog made the world quiet for a while. It made me think of the everyday beauty that is taken for granted, due to our busy schedules. Some days, even our limited attentional abilities can’t take us away from marvelling at nature’s insistence on being noticed, even in its softest of forms. The fog…
Continue reading
Learning Spanish made my world more expansive
November 11, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor When I was around eight years old, I had a friend who used to take me to her church’s community hall on weekends. Being me, I was always open to learning new things. So I’d…
Continue reading
My journey infiltrating the country of Islam
November 11, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Sand Excavator Mission report: Desert Day 1 Subject: Bringing Civilization™ to the so-called Orient. “Girl, we going to Islam?” That is what I asked my adjutant upon dismounting the camel. He nodded gravely. Neither of us knew…
Continue reading
We need to persist beyond symbolism
November 10, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor Every September 30, since 2021, we see public statements made by institutions and corporations that are still operating on unceded land — statements to remind us to observe the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.…
Continue reading
Convenience isn’t always indulgence
November 10, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor and Michelle Young, Co-Editor-in-Chief Working in the food service industry, we often receive single-item delivery orders for something easy to make. When that happens, at least one person makes a snide remark regarding the “silly”…
Continue reading
A Squishmallow-cuddling partner is a no-go
November 9, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Relationship Expert Squishmallow stans may be ready to march with their plush armies after reading this article, but the truth is, owning a Squishmallow just might be a sign of the times. From what I’ve been witnessing,…
Continue reading
We must choose to rest and re-charge
November 9, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor Today’s jam-packed schedules have become the norm. Most people have to juggle a seemingly endless list of tasks and responsibilities just to keep up with the demands of modern life. Plenty of the people I…
Continue reading
Reading for joy is enough
November 8, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor You’ve probably witnessed it before — someone suggesting, with smugness only a self-proclaimed intellectual can summon, that reading authors like Dostoevsky is the only proper way to engage with true literature. I say this as…
Continue reading
The sweet relief of no final exams
November 8, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Opinions Editor Don’t you just love it when a course doesn’t have a final exam? I know I do. A certain joy overtakes me when I realize that one of my courses won’t end with me scribbling…
Continue reading
#NotClueless: Taylor’s engagement? More like my claim to fame
November 8, 2025By: Zainab Salam, Influencer of influencers OK besties, brace yourselves because I have a confession. A major one. Like, this might actually BREAK the internet. It might be bigger than Beyoncé dropping her surprise album and changing the music industry!…
Continue reading
