The Walters Art Museum seeks an enthusiastic and knowledgeable Education Coordinator of School Programs for the Department of Education and Public Programs. We seek an organized individual who will work with the 14-person Education team to provide support for the planning and implementation of programs for diverse audiences, with an emphasis on PK-12 students and educators. This individual will play a central role in the team-based work of the Education Department and in the larger Art and Programs Division.

This article contains some spoilers from “Avengers: Endgame.”

The highly anticipated “Avengers: Endgame” has finally premiered, giving millions of moviegoers a conclusion to the characters we’ve followed for the past 11 years. Though this chapter of MCU films has come to a conclusion, Endgame masterfully completes the stories of our most beloved characters through modes that take advantage of the storytelling done in the 21 films prior.

“Avengers: Endgame” is the fourth full Avengers team-up movie in the long-running Marvel Cinematic Universe that has spanned 11 years and 22 films. Following the events of last year’s “Avengers: Infinity War,” Thanos was victorious in collecting all six infinity stones and snapped away half of all life in the universe leaving the remaining Avengers to either live with their failures or fight back.

The few Avengers that survived the snap all held major roles in Endgame in defeating Thanos and bringing back the fallen. Most notably, the original six heroes brought together in the first Avengers film in 2012 serve as the core cast of the film. These six heroes (Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye) were characters that debuted in the first phase of the MCU (2008-2012) and continued to appear in films since. Moviegoers from hardcore fans to casual viewers have followed the characters’ growth just as we’ve grown ourselves.

Through these remaining heroes, we get the direct aftermath of Thanos’ actions and how the snap affected people in different ways. During Endgame, the Avengers’ first attempt at avenging the fallen leads Thor to lash out and brutally murder Thanos, an action that does not offer a solution to their problems but satisfies Thor’s vendetta against Thanos for the death of Loki and Heimdall.

The film then continues five years later where the remaining Avengers have firmly accepted their defeat and proceed to cope. Dedicated heroes like Black Widow continue to give aid to the world and help people, while others like Thor and Captain America have taken a back seat. Thor copes through alcoholism, letting himself go and trying to forget about his failure to save the universe, a task merely inches away from his grasp. He himself is hesitant to rejoin the effort to avenge the fallen as he was broken by Thanos and scared relive his failures.

Hawkeye, a character absent during the events of Infinity War, has suffered greatly in the snap. His entire family was erased from existence leaving him a broken man. He distances himself from those he knew and takes on a dangerous persona dealing with violence to mask his anger. He is one most willing to do whatever it takes to bring back those lost to Thanos.

Iron Man, a.k.a. Tony Stark, has moved along the most by having a child with Pepper Potts. Tony is moving on whilst living with the guilt of his failures, hesitant to rejoin the Avengers’ attempts to save the fallen when the opportunity presents itself – that opportunity being Ant-Man, a.k.a. Scott Lang, and the newly discovered quantum realm technology that allows for time travel. With this technology, the Avengers set out to acquire infinity stones from specific points in the past to create their own gauntlet and reverse the snap.

The time travel thematically functions to give complete closure to the MCU’s long-running heroes. Returning to events in the characters’ pasts highlights the growth of each character giving homage to the films prior and justifying the long-form storytelling. This is most evident in the conclusions to Iron Man and Captain America.

The MCU was pioneered on the back of Robert Downey Jr’s performance of Iron Man, a lesser-known comic property. Throughout these films, Iron Man maintained a vital presence to all the heroes that followed him. Time travel in Iron Man’s case brought out the common motif of family to Tony. In pursuit of the tesseract, Tony travels and meets a young Howard Stark, his father, who he gets to connect and relate with about their respective children.

Howard died when Tony was just 21, and the death of both him and Tony’s mother was always a sore spot for Tony. Unfortunately for Tony’s family, his heroics in the culminating battle ultimately led to his death. Leaving behind a wife and daughter, Tony’s impact was massive. A final shot panning through the large gathering of heroes and friends shows just how strong Tony’s presence was to the characters on screen, let alone the audience.

The man already out of time, Captain America, a.k.a. Steve Rogers, had the ability to finally live out his life naturally due to the manipulation of time. After the primary mission was completed, Steve was tasked with returning the infinity stones to their respective places in time. But with the technology at hand, he decided to travel to his own time and live out his life naturally. He was finally reunited with his love Peggy Carter and able to have the dance that has been alluded to in several films. Captain America has always sacrificed himself to help others selflessly. His conclusion after years of serving others is well deserved.

Endgame’s plot moves through a packed journey only achievable with the long-form storytelling done before. Through the modes created in the film, we revisit important moments and character dynamics that have been in the back of our minds. As a fan of the franchise, the conclusion to this long story is immensely satisfying. In total, the film of this proportion is an achievement in storytelling. The balancing of 59 returning characters and culmination of 22 films shows the dedication that has ultimately resulted in a grand success.

“Avengers: Endgame” is among the greatest films of the superhero and action-adventure genres. Without sacrificing the fast-paced fight scenes nor epic battles, the film is built upon character moments that were the legwork of the 21 films prior. The characters throughout the series are the heart and soul of the cinematic universe, a tremendous achievement in film history.

Hundreds gathered this past weekend at Baltimore’s own Druid Lake Park to celebrate the seventh annual Charm City Bluegrass Festival. Celebrating one of the lesser known genres in the contemporary music scene, the event served as more than a simple concert on the city’s west side. Rather, the festival allowed fans to experience some of their favorite bands alongside plenty of fans that shared the same passion as them.

Despite the rain on the first day, concertgoers covered the field with blankets and lawn chairs as they sat back and basked in the sun as bands took their turn performing their sets on the mainstage. Closer to the front, the most eager fans stood in a pit, many with ice cold craft beers in their hand as they let they the sweet melody of bluegrass set the tone for their Saturday afternoon.

Acts such as Deer Tick, Steep Canyon Rangers and Baltimore’s very own The Bridge, who performed in front of a passionate hometown crowd that gave them a warm welcome as they took the stage. These bands, along with many others on the bill showcased their own style of Bluegrass, giving each band unique qualities within their music that showed the hidden depth of the genre and the creative ability of the artists performing. The music continued steadily throughout the day as various medleys of banjos, fiddles, mandolins and guitars strum melodically to the accompaniment of classic bluegrass lyrics that made listeners reminisce of their most memorable summer nights.

Playing just as much of a role in the festival were the vendors, who populated a camp of tents across the festival grounds with delicious food and unique items for sale. Bubble wands, handmade clothes and kayaks sat on display as wandering visitors browsed the wide variety of gadgets for them to choose from. Meanwhile, local breweries and food trucks maintained steady lines of customers thanks in part to a mouth-watering aroma that came from their kitchen and wafted into the crowd. Needless to say, the festival was rich in culture from all aspects that created for an atmosphere of good vibes and pleasant music.

The considerable number of families and their kids was a positive sight, as there were excited children running all over the festival grounds. Seeing the younger generation take interest in a classic genre such as bluegrass was refreshing during a time where the digital world reigns supreme in influencing the musical interests of the youth.

The attendance, performances, and the overall atmosphere was a joy to be a part of and proved why Baltimore holds the Charm City Bluegrass festival annually. Whether you are new to the genre or an avid listener, the experience of this year’s festival was nothing short of delightful and should certainly be a priority for local music fans to visit when it makes its return next year.

Tears brimmed in her eyes. Yet another day he had damaged her spirit, her love. Her heart ached to know if what she was feeling was love, if always she would feel this hurt. She wanted to understand how this boy could say he loved her. How many months had it been since he said it like he meant it? That thought tugged at her. Too many. Her hand shook as she reached for the mouse attached to the computer. She stared at its glaring screen with blurry eyes. She stared and she stared at it, barely processing what it would mean if she found the answer she feared: he doesn’t love her.

She slowly typed in the letters, one by one bringing the spear closer to her heart. She felt its fatally sharp edge on her left breast, drawing pain and tears.

She faintly made out the letters on the screen. Define love. The pixels on the computer swirled and the colors slashed at her eyes. Her answer:

• An intense feeling of deep affection
• To find pleasure in someone
• To feel a deep romantic or sexual attachment to a person

She felt this for him. She remembered the moments when she smiled from ear to ear for hours on end as he cracked jokes, and she enjoyed his presence. She felt this for him the day he took her to his favorite spot on a swaying green hill near his home where she had laid her head on his chest and they stared up into the sky as it faded to gold and red and then purple. She felt this for him the very first time she had kissed him when her blush did not fade for hours, and afterward when he had touched her cheek, stared into her eyes softly softly and told her he loved her. She felt this affection when she presented her homemade gifts and when their legs entwined as she sighed into his chest while they were on the couch at home. She felt the burning trails he left on her skin at night and the passion in their eyes as they stared. Her happiest moments, she knew, were those with him.

What happened? Her breathing staggered, and she squeezed her eyes shut. Those memories had been buried beneath their arguments and silences and hatred — in the times that he sat silently across the couch from her and refused to look over at her no matter what she said or even if she held his hand — in that one night when he had called her, crying, and told her he had kissed someone else as she held her breath, waiting for him to say he was just kidding, and most of all, in their very last fight. She could still feel the red hot screaming of his voice and the sting of the slap that night, the night that was filled with the glowing stars on their anniversary, only now swirling and bellowing their dark black emptiness.

That perhaps was the very end of them. Any love left over leaked out of the cracks of their hearts and wedged its way out of their entangled hands. They did not love anymore.

This is an installment in The Retriever’s new creative writing section.  If you would like to submit your creative writing or art for possible publication in The Retriever, please contact pawsforartsubmissions@gmail.com.