![“[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)
Living with Intent, Focus and Enthusiasm (LIFE) board hosted a badminton tournament in honor of this month’s physical exercise theme during Thursday’s school meeting.
During the school meeting, the final and semifinal matches took place concurrently. Frosh Isabel Yang and junior Aman Chandra battled frosh Yimo Xie and Gary Xu for first place. Upper school assistant division head Kelly Horan, math teacher Bradley Stoll and physics teacher Lisa Radice competed against frosh Adrian Jia and Daniel Xi for third place. Aman and Isabel ultimately won first place, and the teachers lost 11-18.
LIFE board member Aanya Sharma (10) emphasized the importance of athletic events in maintaining a healthy balance of academics and overall health.
“We just want to get the Harker population to be more energetic and exercise,” Aanya said. “Lots of Harker kids mainly just focus on studies, and they don’t really focus on taking care of themselves.”
Arturo, who participated in the first round of the tournament on Oct. 16, reflected on his experience in the qualifiers.
“The playing was varied in levels,” Arturo said. “But together they made for a really fun experience, and I’m glad we did it. Initially, I wanted to have some fun with a friend of mine, so I went and signed up, and we played a few rounds, and I had a good time.”
Radice noted that although the teachers felt unprepared, she found the event to be an entertaining way to promote fitness and spirit.
“None of us had played badminton in many, many years,” Radice said. “If we had had a chance to practice a little bit, and had known the rules more than one day in advance, we would have [probably] fared a little bit better, but it didn’t matter. It was still fun, and I enjoyed it.”
