The Featheralist: Volume 05, Issue 01

FOREWORD

Some say the best things come to those who wait. The making of this issue was a careful labor of love. It took editors navigating their tireless nal years at Del Norte, writers committing to impressive research, and artists turning creativity into mountains of art. Admittedly, this is the rst foreword I’ve written. Issue 15 marks my rst issue as the President of The Featheralist, although I o en reminisce on when I joined as a freshman who simply hoped someone — anyone — would read my poetry. As a senior, I’m grateful for this space and every member who helped me realize that my love for writing cannot be contained.

O entimes, when others ask why I write, I struggle to produce an exhaustive answer. But watching our team piece this issue together, I inch closer to the reason. During times like these where the world seems to unravel more day by day, how can we possibly turn to art? When everybody expects something from us, what kind of madness does it take to step away and write a ghazal or to paint a mural? When I speak to creatives, there’s a kind of passion I wish I could preserve in plexiglass and a subsequent kind of rage, excitement, and empathy that would shatter that glass instantaneously. Although mass apathy seems to have taken the world by storm, artists practice the simple yet uncommon act of caring.

People o en ask what the function of the humanities is today. Each year, I witness some of the greatest writers and artists I’ve ever met conform to a path contrary to their passions. Just last year at Del Norte, illuminating writing and lm electives were discontinued because so few students took them. I look back on how clueless I was my freshman year, how eager I was to t under any label and predict how the next decades of my life would look. How crazy is that? At fourteen, nobody, not even the smartest among us, knows for certain. Whether you’re a senior or a freshman beginning to understand your purpose here, I encourage you to shed every label you’ve ever been prescribed and try things because you might enjoy them. If that leads you to write a poem or conduct an experiment in a chemistry lab, let it take you there!

I remember the rst epiphany I had reading a Louise Glück poem. While I can’t call it fate, I knew there was something there, something that forced me to put down whatever calculus homework I was doing at the time and burrow into the core of what she was trying to say. That spark of curiosity that lasted at most an hour now guides me. As humdrum as the routine of going to school every day can be, there’s always a topic that makes us giddy as we gush. If that’s the case, you’re at the beginning of a very special journey.

In “Song of Myself,” Whitman writes “Do I contradict myself?/ Very well then I contradict myself, / (I am large, I contain multitudes).” At rst glance, Del Norte seems to be a STEM student populated school. But a er getting to know some of the students here, I’ve found many a humanist, a poet, a linguist, and an artist. We are multi-faceted, courageous, and restless. We are more complicated than how we outwardly present ourselves. The wisdom and con dence held in the pages of this issue and the walls of this school surpass the norm found anywhere else. Some of our members don’t intend to pursue English, some will, and some aren’t sure yet. But just the other day, in discussion with Treasurer Audrey and Vice President Nicole, I re ected on how, despite being interested in so many di erent things, The Featheralist brought us together. Art and writing are mediums more than they are binaries in that way.

What’s so challenging about the arts is that there’s no way to formulaically complete them in a way that guarantees success. Success is both relative and irrelevant. This fact scares many people. The artists at the heart of this work are inherently fearless people by opening their work to your interpretations. With muses like the root of humanity, trends in cuisine, home remedies, local politics, and social strati cation, I hope the awe-inspiring wisdom of these writers and the inventiveness of each artist will surprise you like they had the rst time I read this issue. I hope these pages teach you something you may have never would’ve found on your own or put you in earnest dialogue with what moves you.

You’ve been waiting, and I couldn’t be more excited for you to nally have this.

Anna Feng President, Editor-in-Chief

ON MEANING

Written by Ellen Xu, ‘23 | Designed by Samhita Lagisetti, ‘26

What is meaning? Meaning, to me, is the gestalt or Aristotelian theory that the sum is greater than its parts. When people say they are searching for a meaning to life, they are actually talking about the search for a higher level objective (the sum) than simply the day to day action of staying alive (the parts). It is more easily described in the abstract: a book possesses more value than its constituent letters, a memory is more vivid than simply a train of thoughts marching along.

Then we get to the remaining question: Is there a meaning that “bottoms out”? As in, is there an inherent meaning to the universe? To answer this, I again turn to similar questions: Is there really one de nitive, smallest subatomic particle? Is there anything really concrete and physical among repulsive and attractive forces? If I touch this table, at the bottom of all the abstractions is there really an “entity” that I am touching? I believe the answer may be no. It is like de ning a recursive loop, a Fibonacci sequence, where there is no initial statement such as “if n=0: a=1”.

It is to choose to speak a language which you know is at once subjective, incomplete, and yet gives you the power to keep living, to communicate with others who choose to speak their own, slightly di erent, interpretations of this language, all of which resides in your own mind which is itself a higher-level representation of symbols which you cannot see the bottom of, only simply say that it means something, something more, to you.

It is what philosophers in Greco-Roman society dwelled on; it is disguised as the ultimate question within heroic epics, fables, and kōans; it is what drives us to stay on the pursuit of living. Plainly stated, the question is: Is there really an underlying meaning to reality?

The rst question that comes to mind is whether or not there is an inherent meaning to things we view as having meaning. Is there meaning in language, or is it the ring of neurons that interprets the language? Is there meaning in DNA, or is it the cellular mechanisms that translate and interpret the DNA? Is there meaning in a math equation, or is it the context in which it is interpreted to describe a physical law?

The consistent view that reality only exists within ourselves, and cannot be separated from ourselves, is somehow deeply troubling. It is as if we are committing a circular reasoning fallacy: I believe in the concreteness of reality because reality is created by my beliefs. Or, it is like stating “The de nition of meaning is meaning”, which clearly is in itself meaningless.

It seems like we are going nowhere with our search for meaning, because meaning, like everything else, is just a gment of our imagination. It is like reading the same book and interpreting di erent meanings from the text. Maybe the text does have an inherent meaning, which the author intended, or a reference frame such as an in nitely intellectual entity which somehow establishes this true meaning. And maybe the universe too has an inherent meaning, just as deists believe in a creator and higher being who initialized the universe, who can say for certain what was meant by this world around us. But the search is futile because we can never know the answer.

In the absence of meaning without interpretation, meaning without an end, meaning without an answer, meaning simply becomes a subjective reality. Meaning, then, is the conscious decision to

“Humanity, at its core, may just be a search for meaning.”

“It is to see order within chaos, to construct a context in which meaningless symbols have a definition.”

Delta Andrea Wang, ‘24 Digital

“It simply may be infinite, or inaccessible, just like our chemistry and cells and neurons are to our consciousness.”

Dark circles have plagued people since the beginning of mankind. In ancient Egypt, people lined their eyes thickly with kohl to hide their sleepless nights from all that pyramid construction. In Hellenistic Greece, they designated special chambers in the bathhouses for therapeutic under eye massages. In pre-revolution France even, aristocrats powdered their faces with white lead, hoping it would hide their hangovers. More recently, the problem of dark circles is plaguing Del Norte. Are you tired of seeing those dark rings under your eyes every morning? Do you hate looking like a character from a Tim Burton movie? Are people asking you to star as an extra in The Walking Dead? If your answer was yes to any of these questions, try this!

THE LEMON REFRESHER

You will need:

1 lemon

2 teaspoons our 3 tablespoon honey

Note: Immediately notify your doctor or healthcare provider if you encounter any of the following side e ects: -skin or eyes look yellow -eye infection -burning sensation around the eyes

1.Cut the lemon into fourths. Squeeze lemon juice from two slices into a bowl.

2.Mix in honey and our until slightly thick.

3.Let remaining two slices of lemon soak in the thick mixture. Let soak for 5 minutes.

4.Place the lemon slices on your undereyes and dab our on top to retain moisture.

SNAIL FACIAL

You will need:

1.Put the rocks and baby carrots in the glass jar.

2-3 fresh snails (preferably picked from a concrete sidewalk) baby carrots smooth rocks/stones a small glass jar with holes on top

2.Let the snails fatten and eat carrots in the jar for 3-5 days. You will know they’re cleansed of dirty juices once their poo turns orange.

3. Place the snails on your undereyes and watch as your dark circles disappear!

TEA FOR 2AM

You will need:

2 tea bags

hot water

1.Soak the tea bags in water and place damp tea bags on your undereyes.

2.Let undereyes absorb tea, preferably overnight.

SPORADIC SLEEPING

Most people do not know that sleeping in increments of 20 minutes throughout the day can amount to almost 8 hours of sleep. Sleeping sporadically throughout the day lets you squeeze the most time out of day and night.

If you think about it, school gives you ample time to snooze. Lunch and break o er great opportunities to take naps. You can do this at the student center located in G118, which has beanbag chairs, great snacks and a microwave (if you ever need warm milk). Another great place is in the library where you can reserve a study room; go behind the bookshelves and you will nd the most snuggly armchairs. In class even, there is plenty of time to catch z’s. Add up the time it takes for the teacher to take attendance, explain the test, talk about their kids, and you have hours of naptime. It may not soothe like ocean sounds, but the droning is still perfect white noise.

A warning from me to you: no matter how hard it is, do not exceed the 20-minute nap time. This exposes you to deep sleep and worst of all — the REM zone. The REM zone is the most dangerous sleeping zone. Once you enter it, there is no going back. You will be trapped in your dream, start snoring, and before you know it, explaining to your counselor why you were murmuring about pooping slugs in class.

There are also many opportunities to sleep outside of school. In the car, dinnertime, walking to and from school, and in the shower are only a couple instances that have naptime potential. All you have to do is be creative.

MAKEUP/CONCEALER

Duh. Add some color corrector, then some concealer on top, and dark circles are virtually gone. Even better, gure out which type of concealer is best for you.

For those who are always on-the-go: stick concealer

We all know someone who is constantly busy (or maybe that is you). If your car is essentially a living space fully equipped with sunscreen, water bottles, blankets, backpacks, Celsius, underwear, and your life is a decathlon of practice, Hamilton, volunteering, and tutoring, then stick-concealers are for you. Quick, easy, and cheap, stick concealers are great to apply in the car without the need for brushes — just use ngers to blend out.

For the practical ones: liquid concealer

If you’re a regular Joe who just needs concealer to hide their dark circles, liquid concealer is for you. Still as portable and practical as stick concealer, but for those who may want to use a sponge or brush to dab it in, liquid concealer has the most reliable formula and is the most common type of concealer on the market.

For the artsy ones: pot concealer No, not that kind of pot! Pot concealer may not be the most pigmented or sanitary concealer, but it adds to the artistic ambience of your workstation with your paint pots and dirty brushes. Finger-friendly, this concealer is for those friends that stay up all night working on their masterpiece to submit to the Studio Art graders. A couple dabs on the canvas, a couple dabs on the face, and in the wee hours of the morning, you still look well-rested and ready to take on fourteen more pieces.

SUNGLASSES

Sunglasses are especially practical since they a) protect from UV rays b) are a bold fashion statement and c) allow for secret naps. However, you should also be aware that a) people may start avoiding you for your bold fashion statement and b) the teacher may become suspicious if you start snoring or don’t respond to their question on who the president was during the War of 1812 (P.S it was Madison).

Yet another useful function of sunglasses is that they block the area under your eyes, exposing the rest of your face to the sun. Now you can match the rest of your face to the shade of your undereyes! Just make sure to tan your face just enough so the surrounding color matches the tone of your dark circles, unless you are going for that “just back from vacation” look.

SLEEP

Not sure how e ective this is. Not many people seem to recommend it, so I’ll leave it to you to decide whether you want to try it or not.

satire (sa-TIRE): the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize.

AN INTERVIEW WITH CONGRESSMAN MIKE LEVIN

Congressman Mike Levin has represented California’s 49th congressional district since 2019. His work includes leading legislation to combat climate change and protect our natural resources. During the 2022 midterm elections, candidates campaigned for positions in Congress. We asked Congressman Levin about his own campaigns, as well as various global policies. Here’s what he has to say:

1. You’re in the Committee of Natural Resources and a cofounder of CleanTech OC. Given this background in environment, how did you get interested in politics and why did you choose to pursue it?

I was raised in South Orange County and attended local elementary and junior high schools. A er my graduation from Duke University School of Law, I worked as an environmental attorney. Additionally, I also served on the board of the Center for Sustainable Energy and co-founded Sustain OC, to help accelerate the transition towards more sustainable power generation and transportation alternatives.

I became interested in politics during my undergraduate studies at Stanford University where I was actively involved with the community and served as student body president. Student government showed me how stakeholders — administration, professors, and students — could work together to improve life on campus. My job now is not so di erent. I meet with various stakeholders, including constituents and organizations, to address issues in our region. My time in college was fundamental to getting me started on this path of public service.

2. In the 2021-2022 school year, Del Norte High School (and nearby middle and elementary schools in the district) received two bomb threats in one week, and a shooting threat two days a er the Uvalde shooting. How do you plan to address shooter safety, especially in schools?

There is no doubt that our country is experiencing a gun violence epidemic. Thoughts and prayers won’t stop the next shooting. However, we know there are solutions that can reduce gun violence and save lives.

As a member of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, I have worked with members of both parties to enact commonsense laws that will save lives. In September 2022, I introduced the bipartisan Prevent Family Fire Act. This bill provides a tax credit for

Written by Rini Khandelwal, ‘24 | Designed by Priya Tantod, ‘23

the sale of safe storage devices for rearms and is a strong step we can take to reduce unintentional discharges, suicides, and school shootings.

In June 2022, I helped pass the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the rst major federal gun violence prevention legislation in nearly 30 years. The bill funds states’ red ag programs, closes the boyfriend loophole that allows domestic abusers to purchase rearms, strengthens background checks for purchasers under 21, and cracks down on gun tra ckers and those who buy guns for someone else. While this progress is important, we absolutely can and must do more. Next, we need to institute universal background checks and pass an assault weapons ban.

Additionally, I have requested that the Federal Trade Commission launch an investigation into the anticompetitive practices, anti-consumer behavior, and oil price market manipulation by California oil re neries. At least six California re neries went o ine this fall, and gas prices spiked far higher than other parts of the country without a clear explanation from industry leaders about why re neries are o ine at the same time or why California prices have diverged from national averages in an unprecedented way. I believe that in moments of signi cant nancial hardship for Californians, re ners should be transparent about the factors that a ect the price of oil and gas.

4. California will ban the sale of gasoline-powered new cars a er 2035 in the e ort to solve the climate crisis. How can we move towards reliance on renewable energy sources more quickly in order to achieve the goals of this ban without burning more fossil fuels?

3. California’s gas prices are the highest in the nation. Energy prices are also on the rise. How are you addressing this problem, especially given the current in ation?

There’s no question we’re all feeling pain from high gas prices. I believe we must crack down on price gouging by Big Oil companies that are making record pro ts while we all pay for it at the pump.

Earlier this year, I introduced the Transportation Fuel Market Transparency Act, which would signi cantly increase transparency within oil and gas markets and direct the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an organization whose mission is to protect consumers and competition by preventing anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices, to proactively prevent any fraud or manipulation arti cially increasing gas prices. The legislation passed the House, but unfortunately Senate Republicans have blocked the bill from becoming law.

We must take aggressive action now to limit the worst e ects of climate change and preserve our planet for future generations. We also know that renewable cheaper is o en cheaper than fossil fuels. That’s why I was proud to help pass the In ation Reduction Act earlier this year, which includes the most signi cant investment in climate action in history. That law invests $370 billion to reduce carbon emissions 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, and it will signi cantly expedite our transition to renewable energy. It will also lower energy costs for consumers with $9 billion in consumer home energy rebate programs, energy e ciency tax credits, clean vehicle tax credits for middle- and low income families, and more.

I have also led several other bills to invest in renewable energy and transition away from fossil fuels. For example, I introduced the Public Land Renewable Energy Development Act to promote the development of wind, solar, and geothermal energy on public lands. This bill includes measures to ensure fair revenue share for impacted communities and minimize impacts to wildlife and cultural sites.

5. Home burglaries have been on the rise in California, especially in this district. What do you think is the biggest cause of this problem, and what legislation do you plan to solve this issue?

One of my top concerns is keeping my constituents safe from all threats, whether it is the plague of gun violence or crime within our district.

“I believe we must crack down on price gouging by Big Oil companies that are making record profits while we all pay for it at the pump.”

Congressman Mike Levin

Digital Manager of Mr. Levin

Photography

I cosponsored the Invest to Protect Act to provide grants for smaller police departments so they have the resources they need to keep us safe and improve policing. Police departments would be able to use the funding speci cally for de-escalation training, mental health resources, body cameras, and recruitment and retention e orts.

Additionally, I have helped secure federal funding for several local e orts to improve public safety. I’m currently working to secure $3.47 million in funding for the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Project. This project would help the Center upgrade equipment and increase collaboration between law enforcement, intelligence, and the private sector to keep our communities safe.

I also secured $587,000 for the Oceanside Police Department to purchase vehicle cameras, including dash cams facing out the front windshield of the police vehicles as well as cameras for monitoring the back seat of the vehicles to ensure accountability and safety.

Finally, I am working to secure $4.45 million in funding for the Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) in San Diego County. The MCRT program helps people who are experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis by dispatching behavioral health experts to emergency calls instead of law enforcement, when appropriate.

6. According to Cal Matters, California’s homeless population has been increasing since 2019, especially a er the COVID pandemic. What steps are you taking to solve this issue?

Homelessness is a complex problem that requires coordinated action from local, state, and federal governments. In order to address the increasing homelessness in California, we must work to create more a ordable housing opportunities. I was proud to support the passage of the American Rescue Plan, which included $5 billion in funding for emergency vouchers to transition those experiencing or at risk of homelessness to stable housing. I am also a proud cosponsor of the Ending Homelessness Act, which would expand access to the Section 8 housing choice voucher (HCV) program by ensuring all quali ed families receive a voucher.

I’m proud of the progress we have made when it comes to addressing homelessness among veterans. I have introduced and gotten several veteran homelessness bills signed into law, including the Homeless Veteran Coronavirus Response Act to expand and strengthen Department of Veterans A airs (VA) services for homeless veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill was later amended to include other bipartisan bills I introduced to strengthen and expand services for homeless and unemployed veterans. I also got my bipartisan Reducing

Veteran Homelessness Act signed into law to help ensure that homeless veterans and their families receive the resources and services they deserve. And last but not least, my bipartisan Housing for Women Veterans Act directs a portion of VA homelessness funding to women veterans.

I will continue to work with state and local partners to reduce homelessness in our region.

7. Ukrainian refugees in America have been struggling to adjust due to language barriers and a lack of resources. What steps are you taking to make resources accessible and easy for refugees to understand? How can we help them adjust to American life?

I support military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine to defend their sovereign nation from Russian aggression, and I strongly encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do the same. I have met with many local stakeholders, including members from the House of Ukraine, to better understand how I can support Ukrainian refugees in America.

In March, I was proud to vote to provide $13.6 billion in military, economic, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. More speci cally, this legislation provided $2.65 billion for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide food and health care support in Ukraine and $1.4 billion for migration and refugee assistance. In May, I voted for another $40 billion in emergency funding to support the Ukrainian people and defend global democracy. This includes $900 million to provide refugee support services and $54 million to provide medical support for arrivals from Ukraine, and $350 million in humanitarian support for refugee out ows from Ukraine.[1]

I also support President Biden’s designation of Temporary Protected Status for Ukrainian refugees, which will o er critical legal safeguards for Ukrainians seeking safety in the United States.

8. President Biden recently granted a pardon to those convicted of simple marijuana possession, stating that black and brown people have been arrested for this at

disproportionate rates compared to white people. What e ect do you think this pardon will have on our justice system?

I support the decriminalization and the legalization of marijuana. People convicted of simple possession or use of marijuana have been locked up for years and denied housing, jobs, and other bene ts. President Biden’s pardon is a huge step to correcting decades of injustice that disproportionately hurt communities of color. However, we must continue to do more. We need reforms at every level of government to address the systematic racial injustice throughout our society, particularly in the criminal justice system. I hope this pardon is the rst of many steps taken to address the inequality within our justice system.

9. President Biden’s CHIPS and Science Act looks to increase domestication of the production of critical technologies, while also lowering the costs of goods and o ering more high-paying manufacturing jobs nationally. Do you think this Act could foster any tensions in foreign relations?

It’s critically important for the United States to lead the way on manufacturing the things we need here at home. The CHIPS and Science Act will bring microchip production back to America, turbocharge innovation, and improve our national security. This law will also lower costs for everything from cars to computers and create good-paying jobs. This is a prime example of how we are investing in American families and workers and creating new opportunities right here at home. Those bene ts far outweigh any potential e ect on foreign relations.

10. What was your favorite memory from high school? What advice do you have for high schoolers?

Probably my AP American History class, which compelled me to learn everything I could about our founders and democracy. This interest has only grown stronger as the years have gone on.

My advice for current highschoolers is to use this time to discover what subjects you enjoy and what you are passionate about. As graduation approaches, you may feel stressed about what comes next. Don’t be afraid to speak with the experienced adults around you, whether that’s a teacher, coach, or another form of a mentor, and ask them any questions you may have. But above all, remember to enjoy your experience and have fun!

Thank you Congressman Levin and his o ce for their time! We greatly appreciate it.

1. https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/democra ts.appropriations.house.gov/ les/Additional%2 0Ukraine%20Suplemental%20Appropriations% 20Act%20Summary.pdf

“I’m proud of the progress we have made when it comes to addressing homelessness among veterans.”

FALL OF THE FIRST GLOBAL CIVILIZATION

Written by Vinay Rajagopalan, ‘24 | Designed by Amina Aslam-Mir, ‘25 and Julia Huynh, ‘24

Our modern civilization is perhaps the most interconnected that it has ever been. Just take a look at your clothing: most likely, it will read “made in China''. Think about it: the clothes on your back were made thousands of miles away. This level of cooperation and interdependence between all countries of the world seems entirely modern—a er all, people in the past were all nasty and brutish, hardly more intelligent than cavemen. But this is not true. In fact there was one era of history where the majority of the powers of the world were all interconnected-the Bronze Age. It occurred mainly in the Near East, and many of the rst empires arose during this time: The Baylonian, the Assyrians, and of course the Egyptians. But a er thousands of years of prosperity, the Near East suddenly crumbled into nothing. Why did this happen?

First, let’s take a look at the world before the Bronze Age Collapse. First o , are the Mycenaeans. They were a civilization that existed in Greece that built huge, forti ed palaces. They hugely in uenced the following Greek civilizations. The next civilization is the Hittite Empire, an empire in Anatolia (Turkey), who were a combination of the Hatti and the Hurrians. They controlled a vast amount of territory, and o en fought with the Egyptians over the Levant. Speaking of, Egypt was in its New Kingdom era, which saw its most famous rulers like Akhenaten, Tutenkhamun, and Ramses the Great. These rulers made Egypt an empire, spreading its borders to Kush in the South and to Anatolia in the North. Next is Babylonia, which at the time was ruled by a tribal people called the Kassites. The language used in this empire was Babylonian, and it used the cuneiform script. Other minor powers were the Assyrians, who eventually gave their name to Syria, and the Elamites, in modern-day Iran.

These great powers were all very closely integrated. Why? Well, because of one thing,

which gives its name to the era-bronze. Bronze is created by smelting together copper and tin. A big source of Copper was the island of Cyprus, which was constantly being passed around between the great powers. Thus, it was pretty simple to obtain copper-tin, not so much. See, we still don’t know where the people of the Bronze Age Middle East got their tin-they just called it “Tin Land”. This may have been anywhere from Spain to even England. But regardless of where it may have been, it points to an extensive trade network that reached beyond the Middle East. This is not the only piece of evidence we have either. A ship o the coast of Uluburun, Turkey, was found laden with copper, tin, glass, ivory, and more. These products were found in places as distant as Kush and even Nubia. And perhaps the most telling sign are the Amarna Letters, tablets of correspondence between the pharaoh of Egypt and the rulers of other nations like the Hittites and Baylonians. The Letters, and countless other tablets and writings prove that the ancient Middle East was interconnected through countless trade routes, bringing materials from all over the world. But, concerningly, they also heavily depended on this interconnectedness, because their fragile economies depended on trade. For example, the Hittites needed Egyptian grain to feed themselves. There was prosperity-the Egyptians built many temples, mostly to praise their pharaohs. But this interdependence would soon fall apart. All of these empires, except the Assyrians and the Egyptians would completely fall apart. What could have caused this disintegration in such a short time?

For nearly a century, the blame was squarely placed on the Sea Peoples. Who were they? Well…we don’t know. We don’t even know what they called themselves-the name “Sea People” was coined by French Egyptologist Emmanuel de Rougé, who rst uncovered them from an inscription in Egypt. Other inscriptions from Europe mention they come from the “north”-some scholars take this to mean they came from Europe. Some famous faces hypothesized to be the Sea Peoples include: the Philistines, the Greeks, and even the displaced Trojans a er the Trojan War. What we actually know about their origins is that they were a confederation of many di erent tribes. They may have ed their original homelands because of crop failure, or maybe even war, bringing their families with them to settle in the Eastern Mediterranean. In doing this, they are charged with burning the great powers of the Bronze Age to the ground. They raided many of the

cities along the sea, devastating them. A letter by the ruler of a city called Ugarit to the Hittite emperor tells of how the Sea Peoples devastated the city-because of how his army and navy were elsewhere defending against other attacks from the Sea People. Around this time, many of the palaces in Mycenaean Greece were destroyed or abandoned, though there is a caveat to this that we will look into later. They also attacked Egypt, though were defeated in several battles. In fact, a er Ramesses III defeated them in a naval battle in 1175 BCE, they slowly ceased to be mentioned in the historical record.

For so long, that was the accepted story of the Bronze Age collapse. The devastating raids of the Sea Peoples were too much to bear, and civilization disappeared for hundreds of years. But slowly, scholars started picking the theory apart, pointing out its inconsistencies. Firstly, all empires had survived invasions before. For example, the Hittite empire had even survived getting its capital sacked by a northern tribe called the Kaskians. Though the invasion of the Sea Peoples may have been especially brutal, they would have only devastated the coastal cities-this, on its own, would not be impossible to overcome. Also, the Egyptians beat the Sea Peoples, and yet they still collapsed (albeit not to the extent of places like Greece and the Hittites). A clue can be found in those Mycenaean palaces mentioned earlier. Some of them were burned down (maybe by the Sea Peoples or maybe by someone else), but some of them show signs of earthquake damage. Some of them are burned down, but have no evidence of weapons, pointing to just a regular old re being the cause of the palace’s destruction. But res and earthquakes (especially the latter) are a common occurrence, and are not enough to explain the total collapse we have seen-at least, by themselves. You see, the theory that’s growing in popularity is that it was all of these factors, and more, that destroyed the Bronze Age civilizations of the Middle East. Combined, there would be disaster a er disaster, with no time to recover. No civilization could survive that. So let's go through all of these disasters that would have happened in quick succession. There would have of course been the Sea Peoples. Also, earthquakes, perhaps several in quick succession, could have wreaked havoc on settlements. There were also the e ects of climate

“You see, the theory that’s growing in popularity is that it was all of these factors, and more, that destroyed the Bronze Age civilizations of the Middle East.”

“But after thousands of years of prosperity, the Near East suddenly crumbled into nothing. Why did this happen?”

change. There was a decline in rainfall during this period, leading to drought, and bad crop harvest. This naturally led to widespread famine. And what do people do when they are hungry and desperate? Well, that’s what the next cause is: rebellion. There were rebellions documented all over the Eastern Mediterranean, from Israel to Egypt. In places like Greece, these rebellions may have destroyed cities (though without much written evidence it’s hard to determine whether the Sea Peoples or rebels were the cause of the city’s destruction). Epidemics ravaged the populations of the empires. Once all these disasters combined, they lead to a total system collapse. All the interconnected trade routes that linked the great powers proved to be their downfall.

Once one empire fell, it brought down all others. The very interconnectedness that brought the Bronze Age powers to such heights also devastated them. With trade being disrupted by constant disasters, the economy fell apart, only causing more rebellions. This was more than the central government could handle, so it simply collapsed. In tandem with this, the ruling class disappeared. With no government or rulers to protect them, large cities became untenable, so they were

abandoned. Of course, the collapse looked di erent everywhere, and was caused by di erent things, but these were the broad strokes that happened in many places.

The period a er the Bronze Age Collapse was known as the “Dark Ages”. While its name may have been a bit of a misnomer-some forms of metalworking existed throughout this-civilization was nowhere as advanced as it was before the collapse. The volume of writing decreased, and some scripts, like that of the Mycenaeans, disappeared. People moved from populated centers into the mountains, and the former large and glorious empires shattered or just vanished. But the great thing about humans is that we can recover from anything. Slowly, cities were rebuilt, trade routes were reestablished, and new empires lled the void le by the Collapse.

You may be wondering, if the Bronze Age civilizations could collapse so completely, could our modern day civilization-in nitely more interconnected and interdependent than the Bronze Age-also collapse? Simply put, yes. The importance of tin in the Bronze Age is akin to the importance of oil in our modern age. We can see

this in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Before the war, Europe imported much of its gas from Russia, but with sanctions placed on Russia, Europe is facing a heating crisis in the winter. Besides oil, there’s also the problem of food. Ukraine (and Russia) are one of the largest wheat producers in the world. Because of the war, they aren’t able to export that wheat. This puts millions of people in Africa, who rely on the shipments of wheat and grain, at risk of starvation. And all this is just because of one war between 2 countries. If something more devastating happened (which, due to climate change, is looking more and more likely) it could mean, in the worst case, billions of people could die. And besides doing your part to reduce man-made climate change, there’s nothing you can do. That’s what’s so terrifying about the collapse of civilizations, that civilizations that existed for hundreds or even thousands of years could have collapsed so suddenly and completely. Within a lifetime or two, our entire world could disintegrate, and you’ll just have to try your best to hang on and survive. But, whatever happens, the human race will not go extinct. We will hang on, even if we are culled to only a few thousand members. Our world would never look the same again, but we would still be us.

Bronze Age Family

Daisy Zhang, ‘24 Digital

WINTERING (越冬)

过去了从不回来, 落在脑海中的雪花不懂怎么融化。在这没 有颜色的荒野,有没有有心脏的人物? 当太阳落日时, 我会捧

着没有开的花朵, 拥抱长不大的孩子。我会爬最高的树去寻 找生命。可是所有的雀已经飞下南方了，散射他们灰色的 羽。她如果能够听见我大声的呼喊的话, 她会回来吗? 两个 人一起可以模仿春吗？

有的时候我想念我的童年。寒冷追不上我们。现在, 我们是 总是感冒。 我感麻木时, 脑子转的飞快。我所有的回忆都 长翅膀而不停的试着起飞。后悔变成雨滴散落在我的脸颊 上。还挣扎的叶子变褐而衰变。但我把我的身体想成时钟 。现在是深夜。渐渐的会变成凌晨。这个悲惨的流浪汉会 找到她的家。与此同时, 我保证继续。

Once it passes it won’t return. The snow owers that have descended in my mind don’t know how to melt. In this blank wild, is there anything with a heart? When the sun sets, I’ll cradle the owers that never blossomed, embrace the kids who never grew up. I will climb the tallest tree looking for life. But all the sparrows already ew south, scattering their ashen feathers. If she heard me shouting, would she come back? Can two people truly imitate spring?

Sometimes, I feel nostalgic about my childhood. We ran too fast for the frigidity to catch us. Now, we can’t stop falling sick. When I feel numb, my mind spins. All my memories grow wings and try to take o . Regrets morph into raindrops and fall onto my cheeks. Struggling leaves turn black and decay. Still, I imagine my body as a clock. Night now. Slowly, it will dawn. A forlorn vagrant will nd her home. Meanwhile, I promise to survive.

Written by Anna Feng, ‘23 | Designed by Kevin Du, ‘25 winter Rayne Huang, ‘26 Digital

THE RISE OF BOBA

Written by Anna Prasouvo, ‘24 | Designed by Sophie Cao, ‘26 and Karly Prasouvo, ’26

Whether it is a cool watermelon breeze from Jamba Juice, a homemade lemonade made by grandma, an iced matcha latte from Starbucks, or even simply electrolyte water before a soccer game, we have the pleasure of enjoying a plethora of drinks molded for our grati cation. Humans naturally love to consume foods and drinks that satisfy our taste buds and these drinks do just that. But, in recent years, thanks to the in uence of social media and post a er post of aesthetically pleasing pictures and videos, society has become obsessed with a hot new item: boba.

culture artists breaking into the music industry and collaborating with western artists. For example, South Korean singer Jungkook and Charlie Puth’s song “Le and Right.” Furthermore, Asian dramas are also making waves too. According to Samantha Subin from CNBC, “Squid Game”, a Net ix survival drama series made by South Korean Film director Hwang Dong-Hyuck, brought in over $891 million for Net ix in impact value. Not only boba, but other foods are also being enjoyed by the American audience: nasi goreng from Indonesia, pad thai from Thailand, fried rice from China, spring rolls from Vietnam, and countless other dishes.

As an Asian American myself, I take pride in seeing Asian culture in uencing the United States. From chopsticks to sriracha, ramen, manga, china town, and Bollywood, Asians have truly made an impact here. So the next time you take a sip from your $6.86 Strawberry Colada from Teaspoon, remember the culture you are appreciating as you relish in the vivid avors held within the cup.

.

Bubble tea, also known by the shorter name “boba”, is a tea-based beverage originating in Taiwan in the 1980s. The drink was brought over to America in the 1990s by Taiwanese immigrants. The name “boba” stands for the tapioca pearls that are in the drink. However, the drink itself can be any avor, texture, or tea: there is the popular milk tea, fruit smoothies, avorful slushies, you name it. Boba is perfect for a postgame treat, dessert a er a meal, or an a er-school hangout beverage. It is (mostly) cheap too! Boba is ridiculously appealing. It is its versatility and wide range of avors that have aided its rise to popularity in the ca eine-obsessed United States with over 15,000 Starbucks shops.

Despite the competitive food market, boba chains are nding their footing in the states with bubble tea stores popping up like never before. Recently, 4S Ranch has seen its rst bubble tea store with Teaspoon opening its doors this October in the 4S Ranch Commons, a mere 4-minute drive from Del Norte High School.

Personally, I delight in the hype boba is getting! It is just one example of a deserving piece of Asian culture being appreciated in the western market. Another example of Asian prominence in the United States is the huge surge of Asian pop

“Bubble tea, also known by the shorter name “boba”, is a tea-based beverage originating in Taiwan in the 1980s.”

boba

Andrea Wang, ‘24 Digital

ISN’T WORKING. HERE’S HOW WE CAN BUILD SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS FROM THE GROUND UP.

You’ve probably thrown something in the trash over the past day. Perhaps a food wrapper, a plastic water bottle, or the packaging from your latest Amazon order? While less frequently, you’ve probably also thrown out old electronic devices, clothes, and unusable furniture. All of this trash added up to about 4.9 pounds of waste being thrown out per person in 2018. The answer to this trash conundrum is simple isn’t it? Just recycle everything! If the three R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) have been around since the 1970’s, why do Americans continue to create more and more waste every year?

The current “take, make, use, lose” model is known as a linear economy. We rst see such an economic model emerge during the Industrial Revolution as products began to be made in bulk for the mass market. This increase in manufacturing was built o the back of colonization which ensured the global availability of raw materials. A er a plethora of cultural movements, economic changes, political changes, and two world wars, the ability to buy and easily dispose of cheap consumer goods became somewhat of a status symbol. Thus, the painstaking work (and price) of individual cra smen was replaced by mass production o en powered by outsourced and exploited factory workers.

Written by Shreena Dayal, ‘25 | Designed by Daisy Zhang, ’24

While most, if not the entire, consumer goods sector is built on linear economies, the fashion and consumer electronics industries best exemplify the negative e ects of the model. Fast fashion, an issue currently in the cultural spotlight, is an industry pattern characterized by extremely fast trend cycles and produce-use-discard cycles. At its fastest, clothes from SHEIN, a major player in fast fashion, only take one week from the design of a piece to shipping to the customer. Workers are paid per piece sewn rather than per hour.

“The current “take, make, use, lose” model is known as a linear economy.”

Additionally, they are not allowed to leave before their quota of hundreds of garments is completed. The hurry leads to poorly sewn, cheap clothes which are treated as disposal by the in uencers who buy thousands of dollars worth of SHEIN products to create “haul” videos. In this way, the desire for cheap, instantaneous, micro-trend-following clothing has grown. These clothes only add to the massive piles of garbage simply sitting on Earth. In addition, since most fast fashion clothing uses synthetic fabrics like polyester, it doesn’t biodegrade as easily as clothing made from natural fabrics like cotton.

Another industry focused on fast consumption and questionable disposal is the consumer electronics industry. Through techniques such as convincing advertisements and planned obsolescence, customers are maneuvered into buying a new phone every year. Planned obsolescence is a method that includes the practice of arti cially limiting the life of the product and reducing options for repair. While it originated in the lightbulb industry, planned obsolescence has since spread throughout the consumer goods sector, leading to the unnecessary disposal of many usable or repairable products. However, electronics in particular are extremely hard to dispose of. Many products, instead of truly being recycled, are sent to countries in the Global South. There, the

products are taken apart by workers who likely don’t have the correct protective equipment and don’t receive good pay. Workers who take apart electronics for the metal parts are exposed to toxic chemicals and dangerous working conditions, a reality that the tech companies making the products, as well as the consumers, o en ignore. The disposal of electronics in countries in the Global South can be considered a form of “environmental racism”. The persistence of the

“take, make, use, lose” model is the cause of these harsh environmental conditions the workers must endure. Now that we know the problem, how might we x the global economy to take these issues into account?

10 Months of Plastic Water Bottles

This is where the circular economy model comes in. Circular economies are circular in nature, meaning they focus on reducing production in general and reusing and recycling materials if necessary. Within a circular economy, products are designed with the end of their life in mind. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), a system in which the producer is held responsible for the disposal and other environmental e ects of the product, may also be implemented. The circular economy model works to create an economy that doesn’t rely on the use and disposal of nite resources. Within the consumer electronics industry, this might mean fewer releases of new, barely-improved tech. It also includes the “right-to-repair” movement which focuses on keeping the ability to repair in the hands of the consumer. Within the fashion industry, it means the reduction of production by reducing trend-related demand. The clothes that are produced should be high quality and meant to last. In addition, sustainable materials should be used for e ective reuse and recycling.

These changes might be extremely hard because we live in a society dominated by pro t-hungry corporations. Real change within the industry can only be enacted by companies, who will need motivation from consumers and the government. However, as an individual, you can take action by being more conscious of your consumption. As always, make sure to replace single use plastics with more sustainable alternatives like cloth bags and metal water bottles. I promise, you don’t need a new phone every year. Your current phone works just ne. In addition, you can reuse old semi- and fully-working electronics. For example, you can use an old phone as an iPod-style music player instead of letting it go to waste. In terms of clothing, you can shop at brands that o er long-lasting, environment-friendly clothing. A er all, which is better? Buying clothing that costs $50 but lasts you years or buying a “disposable” piece that costs only $2 but the health of the environment.

Nicole Pi, ‘23 Mixed media

“Within a circular economy, products are designed with the end of their life in mind.”

RAIN

Written by Riya Patil, '24 | Designed by Angela Chen, '25

Someone once told her that rain was the purest form of water there was.

They said that each shape of water represented something di erent. Something obscure, that was hard to de ne.

Water in itself is an enigma.

It twists and ows like a river, or dances and oats like mist. The lovely and calming sound of a stream versus the raging harsh pull of a whirlpool. It is mischievous and cunning, changing its shape to conform to the ones it comes across.

She could vaguely remember what he had told her about the water while they stared out into the waves.

Careful. It might seem gentle, but the waves can sweep you away in an instant. No one will hear your cries then.

Her book bag weighed her down and she trudged through the wet, darkened concrete that made up the sidewalk. Droplets of water landed on her head, rolling down her hair and dripping onto the ground.

She kept up a fast pace, her shoes splashing through the murky puddles, trying to nd sanctuary somewhere from the relentless downpour. She spotted an empty bus stop, its bench speckled with raindrops but otherwise dry. Coughing slightly, she beelined to the bench and sat herself down, dropping her bag beside her shivering feet.

As she regained some of her composure, she rubbed her cold hands against the thin fabric lining her arms. She let out a so and quiet exhale, her breath condensing into fog and then dissipating into the air just as quickly.

Pulling the handle of the bag up to her lap, she ddled with the strap for a couple seconds, watching rain droplets fall out onto the sidewalk and cover the hoods of cars parked down the stretch of the street. Darkness shrouded the nearby

buildings, and in the silent moment that followed it occurred to her that it might be quite dangerous for her.

Somehow, she couldn’t bring herself to care.

Other students from the university hurried past her bench, whispering hurriedly to each other, safe under umbrellas that she foolishly didn’t have the forethought to bring. Most of them were her classmates, but they probably wouldn’t bother acknowledging her presence. In fact, they probably didn’t know she existed.

It was justi ed. She never spoke during class, never made an appearance at any college parties, and was one of the lucky few that didn’t have to room with another person. Some people in her high school used to rumor that she was mute.

They weren’t that far o , she thought as she rubbed her arms to keep warm. She folded her hands in her lap and closed her eyes, listening to the rain fall.

What was it about rain that he had told me about?

Rain. It was the essence of the human soul, from what she remembered. The droplets that fall from the sky start o clean and untouched, but once they fall to the ground, they lose that precious purity they once held. People are also like rain, progress ing from childhood to maturity like a single droplet out of hundreds falling from the sky.

It was easier to admit that maybe rain was just rain. Just condensed moisture that falls from the clouds in small droplets, and nothing more than that.

She could recall when water was nothing more than a simple form of entertainment to her, pushing the limits of her imagination. The feeling of watching waves crashing against a shore at night, or snow akes dropping silently to the ground during the barren days of winter still make her shiver in awe.

Her childhood days were spent in fascination with how water manipulates itself into di erent forms.

She remembered sitting for hours at the windowsill, counting the several drops of water that fell from the sky, wondering what rain really said about a person.

People used to give her an odd look when she asked that question, and at some point she stopped asking it.

Her eyes uttered open, squinting to adjust again to the semi-bright streetlights that illuminated the rainy roads. She sighed and tightened her hold around herself as a particularly chilly wind blew by, tossing a couple stray drops onto her face.

Thinking about the past always brought a heavy feeling to her chest. Maybe it was remembering the hours spent lounging in front of the window. Maybe it was how comparing people to water made her feel. Maybe it was that if she talked more, it would be easier to believe that the world isn’t just lled with naive and ignorant people.

“Are you okay?”

She startled, looking up into the clearest eyes she’d ever seen. The light blue swirled with speckles of green, cleaner than any ocean she’d been to. It belonged to a kind face, expression scrunched in slight confusion and amusement.

“I’m guessing you’re okay, since you noticed me,” he said lightly when she didn’t answer, sitting down on the edge of the bench. “Deep in thought, huh?”

She opened her mouth before closing it a second later, and just nodded. He would go away soon enough and leave her alone, just like they usually do.

“Not much of a talker are you?” he hu ed out a laugh. “That’s ne. Quiet people usually spend more time in their heads, which makes them interesting to listen to when they do decide to talk.”

She blinked, and turned her head towards him. Interesting?

“What makes them so interesting to you?” she heard herself saying, her voice slightly scratchy from being unused.

She instantly shut her mouth, surprised at herself for initiating conversation. If she had said nothing,

he would have le , and that would have been it. His slight smile turned into a satis ed grin, “I don’t know. They just always have something refreshing to say.”

“Refreshing,” she repeated. Her mind told her to shut up but the words just tumbled out of her mouth like water bursting from a dam.

“Like rain. The rain is rather refreshing, but only when it rst falls. Once it mixes with all the dirt and lth from the ground, it gets tainted and uninteresting. Like people.”

If he was surprised or bewildered by her rant, he didn’t show it even though he had just been proven right. Instead he nodded thoughtfully, “I agree, but what if it doesn’t hit the ground?”

What if it doesn’t hit the ground? A slight shiver ran through her, even though she wasn’t the slightest bit cold anymore.

“If it doesn’t hit the ground, then it can’t be tainted right? Some people are like that too, they just don’t let themselves get a ected by the dark parts,” he said thoughtfully, before turning back to face her.

Her eyes dropped down to her lap, where her hands had started shivering again. Whether it was

from the cold, or from something else, she didn’t know.

“I suppose so,” she said quietly. Her gaze stayed in her lap for a while longer, until she saw him shi in her peripheral vision. She turned, in time to see her stranger-turned- companion stand up. He had his umbrella opened in one hand, and extended it in

Pursing her lips, she nodded and stood up, leaning down to pick her bag o the oor. He knew who she was, but she didn’t know him. All her life, she’d been the observant one and barely anyone noticed her.

It never occurred to her that maybe she was also like one of those contaminated raindrops. A er all, almost everyone is a ected by the less than pretty parts of life, and she is no exception.

She stole a glance at him as they walked down the street, wondering what compelled him to come and sit beside her when he clearly could’ve just gone back to his dorm. Maybe he saw her and thought she looked pathetic, and decided to talk to her out of pity.

Or maybe he was one of the other raindrops. The ones that don’t hit the ground. The ones that don’t get tainted. He was someone she never had the experience of being around before. The kind who li you up and make you see things from a di erent perspective.

The rain stopped halfway through their walk back to the dorms, so he pulled down the umbrella and shook it o before closing it. The silence was simple and comfortable, something she never thought she might enjoy.

A random drop of water fell in front of her, hitting the damp sidewalk and joining the rest that had fallen earlier. She continued walking, stepping through the puddles of murky water pooled at her feet.

Stopping at a crosswalk, she turned to him, wanting to say something. Sorry for taking your time? Thank you for walking with me? What’s your name?

She must have had an extremely confused expression on her face, because he chuckled a little and clari ed, “You don’t have an umbrella and we’re going in the same direction, so let’s just go together.”

Her eyebrows raised, but before she could open her mouth he explained, “I see you sometimes in the library, we go to the same university.”

Oh. She had never seen him before.

Another stray drop fell, this time right on his nose, and he blinked, staring cross-eyed at it. It rolled o the tip of his nose and he opened his mouth and caught it. She let out a surprised laugh.

He looked at her with confusion. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” she said simply as the sign switched to walk, and they continued down the street.

She thought rain was the purest form of water, like a human soul. But are raindrops ever so pure?

Well, maybe some of them are.

ARE MIDDLE EASTERNERS WHITE?

Written by Nikki Hekmat, ‘24 | Designed by Daisy Zhang, ‘24

Standardized testing — the American teen’s worst nightmare. But a er my recent PSAT, it wasn’t the fact that I’d forgotten the Quadratic Formula that had me irked.

It was the fact that I had to say I was white.

You might be wondering what race has to do with testing; and believe me, so am I. But nonetheless, that was a question asked of every student at the end of the exam. I fumed as I read the phrase that had been carved into my mind since childhood: “White (including Middle Eastern origin).” If one must stress that a group is included, let’s just say they’re not. If one must dictate my choice because they think I will be confused as to which box to check, then wouldn’t you think there’s a problem within the system?

This issue has existed for a long while, partly because many are not informed of its existence. For instance, when I brought up the matter to my friends, I was regarded with raised brows. They were all surprised to hear that MENA (Middle Eastern and North African) people are not represented on forms, applications, etc. How can this be, you might wonder?

In his article “The U.S. Census Sees Middle Eastern and North African people as white. Many don’t,”

Hansi Lo Wang outlines that this notion of Middle Easterners being white began in the 1800s, when large numbers of the community started arriving in the US. “The complicated relationship many people with MENA origins have with whiteness is entangled with a naturalization system in the U.S. that, until 1952, imposed racial restrictions on which immigrants could become citizens,” Wang illustrates. Early generations of Middle Eastern immigrants believed being white was their only way to gain full rights. In several court cases, “[Syrian immigrants] argued they were white in court because the only immigrants that could naturalize to become U.S. citizens had to be found white by law.” So you see, being white was a shield of power—not any recognition of a true identity.

MENA people today now su er from this falsehood set in place long ago. We are not given proper representation in many aspects, from o cial forms to the education system to Hollywood. But the truth of the matter is that we simply cannot be masked by the white label any longer. In the North of Iran, there are indeed those with blue eyes and blonde hair. However, as you dri down South, skin darkens to the point where many Iranians look Southasian. And the rest of the Middle East varies similarly. It is a region of extreme cultural, religious, and genetic diversity, with folk having skin dark as night and light as day. Squeezing everyone under a white umbrella is an insult to the majority of people who truly aren’t.

Establishing a MENA category will do wonders for the community. It will identify and target any disparities within the group, and o er a voice to a people who have been snu ed out for far too long. And this ght is important to not only Middle Easterners and North Africans, but others as well. If we do not stand together when one group is mistreated, what are we to do when it happens to the next? If we had le Jim Crow laws intact, the US would look a lot di erent today. If we had held our tongues at Asian Americans being ridiculed during COVID-19, the hate might still exist now. So I ask — I plead — that it is time for society to extend a helping hand to a new community, and continue the precedent their forefathers began.

Counterparts

Daisy Zhang, ‘24

“Squeezing everyone under a white umbrella is an insult to the majority of people who truly aren’t.”

“If one must dictate my choice because they think I will be confused as to which box to check, then wouldn’t you think there’s a problem within the system?”

TRANQUILITY IS A FACADE

Written by Rini Khandelwal, ‘24 | Designed by Daisy Zhang, ‘24

Stared at so much, Called out for so much, The panic, the anxiety.

Everyone’s eyes set on her as soon as she walked out the door.

Oh god oh god when does it ever end?

Then nally, Finally,

Five years later, change — or “glow-up”, they call it —

Suddenly at the height of popularity: The prettiest, The goddess, The smartest —

“Who is that?”

“She’s so pretty.”

“She’s so smart.”

“She’s so perfect.”

“I wish I was her!”

Stared at so much, Called out for so much, The panic, the anxiety. There was no blending in.

leuocholy

Mixed media

Kaitlyn Ho, ‘25 and Rini Khandelwal, ‘24

“QIE ZI”

Written by Sophia Tang and Kate Xu, ‘25 | Designed by Sophia Tang ’25

the day you died, I printed an old sel e of us: my small arms wrapped tight around you both of us aglow, twin smiles of joy. when did we stop taking those sel es together? every time I pass by it my eyes prick with tears.

yesterday xiao yang1 asked about you. I lashed out my tongue coated in ames my words burning as they ew out of my throat. I can’t handle her questions — can’t she see I’m mourning? she was quiet a erwards and hasn’t mentioned you since. today we went out to eat for the rst time in weeks. the rst dish on the menu was hong shao qie zi2 Chinese eggplant used to be my favorite. remember how you taught me to plant eggplants?

I could tell xiao yang wanted to ask about the dead eggplant garden in our backyard but she bit her words back and we ate in silence.

One of my earliest memories with you was in our eggplant garden. Every day you would go out to the garden to check on the eggplants, water them, harvest them — you cared for them as you cared for me. When I grew capable enough to stand and reach my hands to the top of the eggplants, you taught me, shared every trick there was to know about harvesting eggplants. My favorite part of the day was always planting with you, laughing together as we walked through our garden.

When I was sixteen, taking my hardest classes in school and piling extracurriculars into my life, planting with you began to eat out my time. One day, you asked me to plant with you, and I snapped: “Go away, I don’t care about your stupid eggplants. Can’t you see how much work I have?” You were defensive and hurt, and retorted something. I don’t even remember what you said anymore, something about school or grades or something else trivial — all I remember now is the heat of my anger simmering up. I went into the garden, so meticulously ordered and perfectly cared for, and uprooted rows of eggplants. “Why don’t you replant these eggplants instead of bothering me?” I stormed away, indi erent towards your stunned, hunched gure at the corner of the garden. Back in my room, I could see you through the window, slowly and carefully replanting the uprooted eggplants even as the sun set.

I grew older and busier, and became ever more stressed and irritable. I never saw how your eyebags darkened and your wrinkles deepened, how you now had to support yourself with a hand before leaning down to plant eggplants, how coughs racked your body a er we screamed our throats raw at each other.

trust me, all i want to do is hold you like i did when you were a toddler. we’d walk along the busy streets, holding hands, our smiles tilted up at the basking sunlight. you’re still the same you even a er i’m gone. i know it’s hard moving on but, darling, you have your own life now.

be in the present with xiao yang, days are limited, time is precious. please don’t dwell on me, listen to her, cherish her.

i know it’s hard to enjoy life a er a tragedy but sadness should never restrict you. keep doing the things you love.

and of course i remember, how could i not?

i loved gardening with you. you don’t even know that when you became more distant i would kneel at our garden just to remind myself of the good times. sometimes, my bittersweet nostalgic tears would water our dying plants.

As a toddler, you loved to get your hands on everything you saw. Colored paper, gluesticks, glitter — everything had to be hands-on for you. So when I noticed how much you loved my Chinese eggplant dish, I went to the supermarket one day and found eggplant seeds. Together, we planted the seeds. It took hard work for them to sprout, but it was never a dull moment with you. Sun shining on our backs, sweat glistening, but none of that mattered when we did it together.

Darling, when you grew older, I knew of your busy schedule. I wanted to reach out and let you know how I was always there, but you had become so distant, and I didn’t know how to bridge it. My job was so exhausting, and I was trying to provide for both of us — but I should have reached out to you because the longer I waited, the more daunting it became.

I shouldn’t have snapped back at you that day. I don’t even know why I did — I desperately wanted you, the real you, back. I just didn’t know how to express it properly.

But you should know, those eggplants were my only connection to the days when you were still mine. You ripping them all up, that hurt more than any of your words. The new eggplants I planted were never as succulent or fruitful as our original ones, my trembling ngers unable to support them.

1. xiao yang (小阳) - nickname for daughter; literal translation: little sun

2. hong shao qie zi (红烧茄子) - Chinese braised eggplant dish

mama, I bought eggplant seeds today to start an eggplant garden in our backyard.

xiao yang was reading when I came home and on an impulse

I asked her to come out in the backyard with me. her eyes lit up.

immediately she was closing her book and jumping up. in one hand I held eggplant seeds and in the other, I reached out to hold her small hand, smiling down at her as we stepped outside to begin our eggplant garden.

It wasn’t just my physical health that was deteriorating. You were the bright light in my life, my pride. Losing you, it was so hard for my mind to cope with, and each day got harder and harder without you.

the rst time the eggplants sprouted, you were in the garden and you called for me. seeing that little green bulb, we knew our passion and dedication paid o . together we had created something.

weeks later, the green bulb grew into a ripe, plump eggplant and i cooked it that night. you watched me mesmerizingly as i poured soy sauce, pinched sea salt akes, tossed the wok. we nished that meal in minutes, knowing it was from our own garden a product of our love and care.

xiao yang,

I realize now how precious our time is.

it’s just the beginning. we’ll plant eggplants together you’ll be the yang3 to our plants and it’ll be more than enough.

today, I printed a new sel e of us: my arms wrapped tight around you both of us aglow, twin smiles of joy, holding up our rst eggplant:

the moments gardening with you were precious. you thought you needed to give so much more but i just wanted ve minutes with you to check in our plants, together.

together was all i needed. planting eggplants together was more than enough.

seeing your bright smile with xiao yang is everything i wished for.

i’m proud of you and i’ll say with you: seeing your bright smile with xiao yang is everything i wished for.

i’m proud of you and i’ll say with you:

Into the Abyss

Hannah Geng, ‘24 Acrylic

Sta Contributors

Anna Feng, ‘23 - Co-president/Editor-in-Chief

Ellen Xu, ‘23 - Co-president/Editor-in-Chief

Nicole Pi, ‘23 - Vice-president/Deputy Editor-in-Chief

Audrey Zeng, ‘23 - Treasurer/Editor

Rini Khandelwal, ‘23 - Secretary/Editor

Nikki Hekmat ’24 - Board Editor

Anna Prasouvo, ‘24 - Board Editor

Vinay Rajagopalan, ‘24 - Board Editor

Tyler Xiao, ‘24 - Board Editor

Andrea Wang, ‘24 - Head of Art

Priya Tantod, ‘24 - Co-head of Graphic Design

Daisy Zhang, ‘23 - Co-head of Graphic Design

Advisors

Mr. Thomas Swanson

Dr. Trent Hall

Writers

Shreena Dayal, ‘25

Anna Feng, ‘23

Nikki Hekmat, ‘24

Rini Khandelwal, ‘24

Riya Patil, ‘24

Anna Prasouvo, ‘24

Vinay Rajagopalan, ‘24

Sophia Tang, ‘25

Ellen Xu, ‘23

Kate Xu, ‘25

Daisy Zhang, ‘24

CONTRIBUTORS COLOPHON

Artists

Hannah Geng, ‘24

Kaitlyn Ho, ‘25

Rayne Huang, ‘26

Rini Khandelwal, ‘24

Nicole Pi, ‘23

Aliya Tang, ‘25

Andrea Wang, ‘24

Daisy Zhang, ‘24

Graphic Designers

Amina Aslam-Mir, ‘25

Sophie Cao, ‘26

Angela Chen, ‘25

Kevin Du, ‘25

Julia Huynh, ‘24

Samitha Lagisetti, ‘26

Ariana Mallari, ‘23

Karly Prasouvo, ‘26

Sophia Tang, ‘25

Priya Tantod, ‘23

Daisy Zhang, ‘24

WORKS CITED

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“A focus on recycling isn’t working. Here’s how we can build sustainable systems from the ground up.”

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Ministerie van Algemene Zaken. “From a Linear to a Circular Economy.” Circular Economy | Government.nl, Ministerie Van Algemene Zaken, 23 Dec. 2021, https://www.government. nl/topics/circular-economy/from-a-linear-to-a-circular-econ omy.

“National Overview: Facts and Figures on Materials, Wastes and Recycling.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 31 July 2022, https://www.epa.gov/facts-and- gures-about-material s-waste-and-recycling/national-overview-facts-and- guresmaterials.

Timo Kollbrunner, Public Eye. “Toiling Away for Shein.” Die Neusten Public Eye Reportagen, 19 Nov. 2021, https://stories.p ubliceye.ch/en/shein/.

“Are Middle Easterners White?”

Lo Wang, Hansi. “The U.S. Census Sees Middle Eastern and North African People as White. Many Don’t.” Npr.org, 17 Feb. 2022, www.npr.org/2022/02/17/1079181478/us-census-middle-east ern-white-north-african-mena. Accessed 1 Dec. 2022.

LOOK, UP AT THE SKY. THERE IS A LIGHT, A BEAUTY UP THERE, THAT NO SHADOW CAN TOUCH.

J. R. R. Tolkien