I walked down the street, Paris coughing its winds into my pale skin. My eyelashes were soon clumped with the snowfall sweeping across the pin-top skyscrapers of the city. Suitcases and coats passed by down the snow covered street. I felt enchanted by the subtle snobbery of Paris. I heard the lullabies of a suburban
No Fear
Just hours before I had been in Ecuador and now I was floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I heard my cousins, Sam and Greg, calling my name and I was pulled from my thoughts of excitement and fear of this new place. Sam, Greg, and I had just finished settling into our
Walking the Same Sand
I stood looking out over what seemed to be everlasting blue. The sun was bright and the water glimmered as it reflected the light. I sat down in the sand looking over the edge of the dune and saw the waves of Lake Michigan lapping up onto the sand hundreds of feet below. Near the
Breaching the Gap
Recently I went with my good friend Rebecca and my stepfather to feed and supply the homeless people on the streets of Manhattan. My stepdad’s friend, Bob, does this every week with his partner. He and his friends — people like us — pack a ton of toiletries, meals, and other things a homeless person
Finding My Run
It was a temperate summer evening at my aunt’s house in upstate New York. Having nothing to do, my cousins and I scooted chairs from the patio into the wide, grassy yard and sat, looking up into the big blue sky and letting the gentle wind graze our faces. The wind seemed to carry encouragement
Conquering Lafayette
It was completely unfamiliar and I was overwhelmed with a feeling that I can only describe as UNKNOWINGNESS. For our 6th grade beginning of the year trip, we went to New Hampshire to climb the White Mountains. Although this presented a huge challenge, I was excited and ready to hike. As we got off the
A Champion
There is one thing that every scholastic chess player dreams about. There is one thing every scholastic chess player wants. Yet every year, less than two dozen scholastic chess players out of the thousands who show up get it. This wish is to be the winner at the National Scholastic Chess Championships. I am one
The Amazing Relay
There is nothing like the excitement that runs through you when you are playing a sport and think you can win, although maybe not quite sure, but you are determined to give it all you’ve got. You push and push and push yourself. Well, it’s terrible when your efforts don’t pay off, but truly incredible
