Benji Kabele
What is your first memory of Trinity?
My first memory of Trinity was visiting a church basement as a three-year-old, where my twin brothers Peter and Stephen were in the first class at Trinity. I was also a greeter for Trinity Open Houses and helped at info nights starting in fourth grade. That said, I was still nervous when I came for my shadow day. I remember dropping my psalm book not once, but twice, during morning prayer, and thinking the world must be over. When Mr. Gaffney asked me to share one really unique fact about myself with the sixth grade class, I was dumb-struck. I couldn't think of one thing that was specific to me.
What classes have you particularly enjoyed? Why?
Math was a favorite in my first years of high school. I loved the process of solving more and more complex problems and proving theorems – what I really loved was trusting the tools I had to come to a completely correct answer. Even this became more complex. In a way, our Calculus classes are more like Humane Letters. Sometimes, in the learning process, we were doing things wrong, but that was part of coming to understand.
What do you think makes Trinity Academy distinctive?
One answer is the teachers. Especially in middle school, we had a lot of fun. I think of Mrs. Mertz allowing us to to climb through a classroom window to get a more vivid image of The Princess and the Goblin, or Mrs. Mysliwiec assigning each of us a role to reenact a cell-cycle out in the courtyard, or, of course, Monk Day in Medieval History, in which I was elected abbot to rule over my classmates for a day… But I’ll say I love the cramped-ness of Trinity Academy. Making almost full-body contact standing back-to-front in a line up the stairs after guys’ morning prayer, pushing our way through, we are left with no choice but to say “mornin’.” Although Trinity might not be the most spacious place currently, it forces students to acknowledge each other and reach out to others outside of their own grade.
Do you have a favorite Trinity Academy tradition?
My favorite Trinity tradition would have to be Spirit Week. Bringing in costumes to school makes the entire week of learning exciting, especially when you are dressed up as the Scooby-Doo Mystery Gang.
What is one way you’ve grown while at Trinity?
One challenge was that my closest friends were all a little older than me, so, by my ninth or tenth grade year, they all went to college, and I had to start making friends in my own class. This year, especially, has been a huge change, and I’ve grown in real friendship with my classmates. We’re able to have serious conversations and relate to each other on a deeper level. Taking more of an interest in each other’s lives has changed how enjoyable the learning experience is during class, too.
Who have you looked up to at Trinity, and what did you pick up from them?
In middle school, every time Jay Bowler passed me going to class, he would shout, “Benji!” or “Boodle!” I was embarrassed, but liked it at the same time. Most of the time, younger people won’t show it when an older student knows their name or talks to them. But I think it’s important to them. I’ve tried to carry that on in the way I treat younger students.
What was your favorite book you read in HL?
One of my favorite HL books is Augustine’s Confessions. I was really struck by Augustine’s conflict of soul, by his desire for God and for sinful things at the same time. I love this story because I think it is important to remember that we need to ask for God’s help in our lives constantly, in order to even attempt to be holy people.
What advice would you give to a younger student about how to get the most out of Trinity?
I think you have to get comfortable with not having the answer at first. In middle school, I always imagined that I had to get the right answer or have a certain level of competence that I felt I didn’t have. I figured I would stay silent until somebody else said the right answer. But, with time, I found it was okay to be wrong. It took a while to sink in. Going into high school, I started asking more questions. In ninth grade HL, we were all talking about things we didn’t know about. Once we got into more difficult topics where it really wasn’t obvious to everyone what the answer would be, I became more comfortable not knowing, and was able to ask more questions.
What’s next for you? What do you hope it will be like?
I will be at Carroll College in Montana, studying nursing. I’m excited to see how the things I’ve learned at Trinity go into practice. I want to grow stronger in my faith and convictions. And rather than sitting on my phone at lunch at college, I want to initiate conversations.
