![“[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)
Humans of Harker: Kavya Seth relaxes at the Mix
!["I do like coming to [the Mix] every time I come here, even if I can’t come as often as I want to. Because it's a place for youth, you’re not even allowed to come in here unless you’re a teenager. That’s really important I guess because that means it’s a place just for youth, and that’s really cool," Kavya Seth (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/kavya-591x900.jpg)
“I do like coming to [the Mix] every time I come here, even if I can’t come as often as I want to. Because it’s a place for youth, you’re not even allowed to come in here unless you’re a teenager. That’s really important I guess because that means it’s a place just for youth, and that’s really cool,” Kavya Seth (12) said.
January 3, 2017
Dealing with the stress of being a senior in high school can be tough on its own, but Kavya Seth (12) finds her place of relaxation at the Mix, a branch of the San Francisco library.
Kavya finds a balance between schoolwork and her life at the Mix, in which she has learned many skills necessary to daily life. The Mix offers an abundance of classes such as sewing and contains other unique resources.
“It’s also [has] really good resources too [that] teenagers usually don’t have access to, stuff like 3D printers and a professional recording studio,” Kavya said. “Most don’t usually have access to those things though, and the fact that that is available is really cool.”
At the Mix, Kavya has also met some of her best friends there, after finding out that they shared many common interests. Kavya credits the Mix for providing a space where they met and hang out frequently.
“When I met Aliyah and Cameron for the first time, and we were talking about anime and we were all shaming Cameron for watching dubbed anime and I was talking to Aliyah about Steven Universe. Right after that, Aliyah took us to this weird poetry performance and it was so good,” Kavya said.
As a frequent visitor, Kavya believes in the importance of having a place where teenagers can relax and enjoy the resources available. She supports the idea of having a place dedicated to teens in order for them to relax.
“Because [The Mix] is a place for youth, you’re not even allowed to come in here unless you’re a teenager. That’s really important I guess because that means it’s a place just for youth, and that’s really cool,” she said.
Kavya’s busy schedule permits her from visiting the Mix as often as she likes, however, she still tries to visit when she can.
“[I’ve been coming here] since last year, [but] I can’t come as often as I want to because every time I get a job, I inevitably have to work on Saturdays because I can’t work on weekdays due to school, so I can’t come here,” she said. “They aren’t open on Sundays which kind of sucks, but I do like coming here every time I come here, even if I can’t come as often as I want to.”
As Kavya’s high school career comes to a close, she finds herself relaxing at the Mix as often as she can.
After she graduates, Kavya encourages other teenagers in the San Francisco area to go and make use of its abundance of resources.
