A fluffy golden retriever perks up. Her name is Lisa, and she is 10 years old. Barks echo around the house as she rounds the corner and trots through a series of hallways. She reaches a former bedroom that now resembles an indoor nursery where plants adorn tabletops and windowsills. Jasmine Ishikawa (12) sets down her green watering can to rub Lisa’s ears.

Jasmine considers the nursery her favorite space in the house. She began her planting journey by rehabilitating her family’s indoor plants, meticulously documenting their growth throughout with photographs.

Driven by her pure enjoyment for nurturing her mother’s plants as well as the challenges such an endeavor presented, Jasmine delved into a rabbit hole of plant research. By immersing herself in the world of botany, she equipped herself with the knowledge to address the needs of a diverse range of plants.

“When I get involved in something, I get super involved with it,” Jasmine said. “I nerd out, I visit the Reddit threads, I visit random forums that probably give me a virus and read through PDFs. Reading up on plants can be hard, but I really enjoyed doing it.”

But none of this browsing is for naught. She applies her knowledge to raising new plants, testing different growing methods to find one that works best. Her latest research involves polka dot plants, which sport spotted leaves and are notorious for high maintenance. Despite her past three unsuccessful attempts to sustain them, she observed a trend of improvement with each successive plant. 

“I’ll probably get a new one and try again, because I’m stubborn like that,” Jasmine said. “The last time I got this plant, it survived for a bit longer. Then it died all of a sudden, but the fact that it lived longer is a sign that I’m actually improving.”  

For Jasmine, the time she invests into caring for her plants is priceless. She finds fulfillment in witnessing their growth and enjoys the sense of responsibility it entails.

“To see something thrive and grow because of something that you did is probably one of the most ‘Oh my gosh, I really did that’ kind of moments you can have,” Jasmine said. “I really like that. It’s like raising a child but without the stress.” 

The same mindset applies to her cooking and baking endeavors. While she claims she “is still not a Gordon Ramsay cook,” she often experiments with different recipes. Usually, she opts for apple or pumpkin pie to satisfy the cinnamon lovers in her family.     

“I particularly enjoy the experimentation aspect of cooking and baking,” Jasmine said. “You can change a recipe in subtle ways to make it how you want it. It forces you to really interact with the things that you’re making.”

Close friend Meishin Yen (12) met Jasmine in kindergarten. After they both transferred to Harker in sixth grade, they found comfort in their shared experience at the school. Reflecting on their 13-year friendship, Meishin particularly loves Jasmine’s quips, which always make her smile. 

“She has a way of phrasing certain things that could be ordinary sentences, but the way that she says them is just so funny,” Meishin said. “Sometimes it’s just dry humor, but it makes the conversation more lively.”

Jasmine nurtures friendships just as she cares for her household flora. Close friend Ellie Schmidt (12), whom Jasmine met in sixth grade, has witnessed Jasmine’s quirkiness in lighthearted moments and her steadfastness in challenging ones.  

“I’ve seen her grow into someone who has retained being funny but also become such a mature person,” Ellie said. “I always think of her as someone who has very strong morals. She’s always stays strictly to her values.”

Jasmine’s composure left an immediate impression on upper school history teacher James Tate, who would pose controversial questions to their AP United States History class to stimulate discussion. In class, Jasmine always responded with calmness and composure in their discussions. 

“One of the things I really appreciated about her in class was that she didn’t knee-jerk respond to stuff,” Tate said. “She always had something considerate and thoughtful to say about topics and class questions. She’s a very stabilizing presence.”

Her calm voice, her growing plants, her knowing smile as friends giggle at a joke — all of Jasmine’s characteristics seems effortless because to her, it is. Each interest is genuine, and the resulting care extends to all that she cares about, be it her dog Lisa, her lifelong friends or her plants. 

“As long as you’re able to enjoy what you’re doing, that’s enough of a reason to do it,” Jasmine said. “Taking care of plants isn’t going to get me a Nobel Prize, but I enjoy doing it. Baking pies doesn’t make me the winner of Hell’s Kitchen, but I like doing it because it’s fun to me. I think that’s enough of a reason to invest your time into something.”