As the year 2025 draws to a close and the new year 2026 begins—bringing with it, as an essential ingredient, Hope—the natural impulse for each of us, and for me personally, is to offer wishes that the coming year will bring Health, Love, Peace, Joy, and the fulfillment of our aspirations. This inevitably leads to reflection: what the departing year has brought, and what I have managed to achieve, both socially and on a personal level.
I consider it a particularly important milestone that I successfully completed my studies in Archaeology at the University of the Aegean and took the oath at the most recent graduation ceremony, held at the University of the Aegean in Rhodes on November 10, 2025.
Equally significant to me is that my love for this field—a branch of the humanities—was confirmed by earning my degree with distinction. This crowned my efforts and sealed a rewarding journey into knowledge, along with the validation that accompanies it. A journey whose completion opened new horizons, leading to new paths of learning and to the joy and fulfillment that knowledge provides.
What I mention here may seem of little importance to many. Yet for those who know that this journey took place after the completion of a professional career in the technical field—as a certified mechanical engineer, a graduate of the Polytechnic School of the University of Patras, with service, among other roles, in the Hellenic Air Force and the Civil Aviation Authority, both in technical and administrative capacities—and for the even fewer who know that my original education was classically oriented, with Ancient Greek, Latin, and classical studies, and above all for me personally, this achievement carries deep meaning. It was an inner need: the closing of a cycle of classical studies and a reconnection with what classical education ultimately serves.
After all, “Man shall not live by bread alone”… and it is never too late.
Most importantly, knowledge—our need for it, the search for it, and the happiness it brings—remains our beloved and faithful companion to the very end.
As the saying goes, “I grow old always learning”—and at present, being taught.
Ypapanti Stefanou Koullia
