![“[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)
Wellness Week: LIFE lessons with LIFE Board
![Cards with encouraging messages were displayed around campus during Wellness Week. “We all wrote down some kind of encouraging phrases on notecards to put around school,” Sonya Apsey (11) said. “It was really nice to see our advisory bonding over something [we] normally wouldn’t get an opportunity to talk about, and I think Wellness Week gave [us] that opportunity.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/stringactivity-900x601.jpg)
Cards with encouraging messages were displayed around campus during Wellness Week. “We all wrote down some kind of encouraging phrases on notecards to put around school,” Sonya Apsey (11) said. “It was really nice to see our advisory bonding over something [we] normally wouldn’t get an opportunity to talk about, and I think Wellness Week gave [us] that opportunity.”
The Living With Intent, Focus and Enthusiasm (LIFE) Board hosted their annual Wellness Week from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2 with activities dedicated to reframing, nutrition, exercise, sleep, relaxation and more to promote mental and physical health.
LIFE Board representatives Reshma Kosaraju (11), Edis Mesic (11) and Gwen Yang (12) spoke at Monday’s school meeting to introduce Wellness Week and Monday’s theme of reframing. They encouraged students to approach problems in new ways and reframe their way of thinking to emphasize wellness and positivity. Assistant Division Head of Upper School Kelly Horan, who also leads the LIFE Board, shared resources regarding reframing in a Schoology post to the Upper School Students group, including two videos and an article. Horan made a daily Schoology post about each wellness theme throughout the week.
“Each day of the week, [the LIFE Board chose] a different theme with decided activities or events associated with that theme,” Reshma said.
Tuesday’s Wellness Week theme focused on sleep, and Horan shared two more videos and an article about the importance of sleep, as well as how members of the upper school community can take steps to improve their quality of sleep.
On Wednesday, students participated in the “single string activity,” during which they wrote uplifting messages on small cards and hung them on strings against the walls in various buildings on campus to increase advisory interaction. Message topics ranged from motivation for final exams to encouragement for college applications as the upper school nears winter break.
“We all wrote down some kind of encouraging phrases on notecards to put around school,” Sonya Apsey (11) said. “It was really nice to see our advisory bonding over something [we] normally wouldn’t get an opportunity to talk about, and I think Wellness Week gave [us] that opportunity.”
Thursday’s theme encompassed nutrition, exercise and health, and the LIFE Board hosted a snack bar in the auxiliary gym after school. Ethan Guan (10) also acted as a DJ for a dance party that took place in the auxiliary gym after school along with the snack bar. The LIFE Board provided more information about nutrition on flyers, and Horan shared an article about study breaks as well as a video about the connection between food and the brain on Schoology.
“I think it was great that we have [Wellness Week] to unite the community a bit and just to consider everybody’s unique perspectives and problems together as a school,” Alisa Grebin (12), who participated in the single string activity, said.
The LIFE Board concluded Wellness Week with a variety of activities outside Manzanita Hall during morning office hours on Friday, such as bracelet-making, origami and pop-its, to help students destress and relax. Horan also shared a Wellness Week reflection form on Schoology for students to fill out and offer feedback on the week’s events.
Shareen Chahal (12) is a co-managing editor for the Winged Post, and this is her third year on staff. This year, Shareen hopes to extend her coverage to...
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