Fall 2005 PDF - Milton Academy

Lexi Rudnitsky, Class of 1991, PoetOn January 17, 2005, LexiRudnitsky, Class of 1991, diedsuddenly of cardiac arrest.It is with such sadness and continueddisbelief that we find ourselveswriting a remembrance ofLexi Rudnitsky. We are 15 yearsout of high school, but it was atMilton where we first met Lexiand embarked upon a friendshipthat lasted. It was 1987, ourfreshman year. It all began, asmornings did for many of us daystudents at Milton, with the busride. In fact, anyone who rodethe Needham-Wellesley busroute during those years wouldremember her. Some people juststand out in this world. Lexi wasoften late, desperately flaggingdown the bus, only to come barrelingon, a whirl of long hair, atie-dyed T-shirt, a tea-filled travelmug and that leather bomberjacket she stole from her father.By the time we hit the highway,Lexi would either have us caughtup in laughter or a raucousdebate with the boys in the back.Lexi was both an integral anddefiant member of our class—both at its center and pushingpast its edges. She organizedrecycling campaigns andlaunched feminist critiques inhistory class. She went on tostart Students for SexualEquality and to co-lead Lorax.She played varsity soccer, icehockey and lacrosse, runningcircles around us on and off thesports fields. She wrote provocativepoems for the Magus-Mabusand pleaded with us to reducewaste at the dining hall. Much ofwhat she was fighting for orwriting about was over ourheads at the time, and as a resultshe could be met with confusion,resistance and fear by studentsand faculty alike.Even in the depths of adolescentself-consciousness, Lexi had theastonishing ability to inspire thesilly and spontaneous. She corralledthe girls together at partiesfor Salt-n-Pepa sing-a-longs(“I’m not a man, but I’m incommand. Hot damn! I got anall girl band.”); she organized usto workshop poems outside ofthe classroom; she wrote playsabout us and for us; she pilferedthe library for obscure playwrightsto perform readings inour spare time; she always gavegifts of (used) books.To us, Lexi was a friend offirsts—our first radical, environmentalist,feminist, poet—the first to be unabashedly andunapologetically herself. Imaginethe gift of her friendship atsuch a confusing and awkwardtime. That spirit of solidarity,adventure and integrity neverleft her or her friendships.Eighteen years after meetingLexi, we were as close and connectedto her as we were asteenagers. These were notfriendships reserved for adolescence—ourfriendships grewand deepened as we evolved intogrownups. And she continued toset the bar, with what was one ofher most important contributions:she gave birth to Samuel—the first to become a mother.This proved to be one of hermost brilliant and fulfillingaccomplishments. Lexi and herhusband, Sandro, shared theirlove for one another with theirson, born on October 13, 2004.And unlike some of us whoengaged in adolescent, confessionalpoetry in high school onlyto leave it behind, Lexi’s work atMilton laid the groundwork forbecoming a published poet andscholar, remaining an activist inthe often stifling world of academia.Just one month after thebirth of Samuel, and twomonths before her own death,Lexi received the news that hermanuscript had been acceptedfor publication. Her first book ofpoetry, A Doorless Knocking IntoNight, will be published nextyear.With Lexi, the inimitable combinationof soft and fierce wayswas always a magnet for others,a call to friendship and action.Much of what we care about inour lives today comes fromseeds Lexi planted. It is the luckyclan that has among its membersthe daring friend. Lexi isours.82 Milton Magazine