![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
It’s almost impossible to ignore Christmas. It seeps into advertisements, into the store windows, and onto the corners of streets a few months before the big day.
Over time, Christmas has become this radical, commercialized, and over-hyped day of the year rather than what was once considered the greatest religious day.
I notice the commercialization of Christmas more and more every year. It sickens me to think of what will become of our generation and the next when Christmas is only a day of the year when we give presents to one another. Society is so wrapped up in the physical and material things, as if nothing else mattered.
I don’t hate Christmas; in fact, I have nothing but positive experiences with the holiday itself. Ever since I was a little girl, I would go to Catholic Mass with my family, despite eventually renouncing my faith and declaring myself agnostic. But my religion is one thing, Christmas has become another. From a religious perspective, Christmas is about celebrating the birth and life of Jesus Christ, but it has evolved over time.
Before the mass commercialization, Christmas represented the goodness of mankind and giving back to one another. Even the religious meaning is based upon giving–the idea that God sent someone to earth to explain His values and how to live your life.
As a non-religious person with a cynical view of the world, you’d expect me to have some type of resentment against the holiday. And I do, just not toward Christmas, but the idea of it. It’s not that I hate the idea of “giving to one another”, but I hate the idea that we need one day to express it. If you care for others, you should show love for them everyday and not just in presents but also in the little things.
To me, Christmas is overrated. Over commercialization sugarcoats the time-honored cliché that for one day, just one day, everyone is noble, honorable, and loved. If Christmas is the one day when people recognize the “goodness of humanity” and give back to one another, then we must truly live in a wicked world. If we celebrate this moral decency of humanity through expensive gifts and material objects, we are going about this the wrong way. Show people you care everyday, and give to those you love, not because of some ex-Pagan winter holiday tradition, but because you want to.
