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FEATURES
LifeLines: Melissa Bernstein builds support for mental illness
Lilly Weisz ’23
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Assistant Creative Director Melissa Bernstein, co-founder and chief creative officer of Melissa and Doug toy company, lives in Westport with her family and husband Doug. In March 2021, she published her book “LifeLines,” chronicling her journey against depression, as well as co-founding the LifeLines ecosystem, where she actively provides free services and support for those battling mental illness.
Q: What is “LifeLines” the book?
A: “My book ‘LifeLines’ was really my own bid to finally say who I truly was to the world. After sort of hiding everything I was and everything I felt for my whole life, I really longed to show people who I was. I’m a creative and I really create as my salvation. I think many of us who are creative have really stigmatizing qualities that make us feel unaccepted by mainstream society. I needed to not only accept those in myself to feel whole, because I never did accept myself for all the qualities that enabled me to create, but once I did accept them, I wanted to show others who also have stigmatizing qualities that they can be proud to acknowledge and accept those as well.”
Q: How do your LifeLines help you?
A: “Once I realized that I’m a vacillating bunch of emotions and chemicals each and every day, I knew I needed this LifeLines practice to keep me safe and sane in a crazy body, in a crazy world. That practice comes down to three buckets. It comes down to self-care, which is super important. It comes into tools and skills, which are things like saying mantras to myself, mindfulness, exercise and talking myself off the ledge, giving myself compassion. I’ve traveled to the darkest caverns of my soul and touched despair and looked it in the eye. I have no fear in walking anyone through that path or down into that darkness because I know how to find light again.”
Q: How is your personal struggle embedded into “Life Lines”?
A: “I felt like I give this persona to many that I’m perfect and have this perfect life.In some ways I’ve achieved the American dream in having a $500 million company that’s growing, having an amazing friendship and marriage to my partner Doug, six children and all the material rewards that come with having that commercial success.
Even though I had all that and have all that, that doesn’t make it so you don’t suffer from mental illness. I was born with a really deep, dark form of depression called existential nihilism, which basically makes you think that life is meaningless and you have no ability to make meaning in a meaningless world.
You have to find your meaning. I think in some ways, chasing the superficial societal definition of meaning just takes you away from actually finding that meaning because you’re anchoring to stuff outside yourself that really can’t bring you meaning in your soul.” MORNING TEA Bernstein drinks tea each morning, which brings a sense of comfort and balance to her day.
Staples community strives for sexual assault awareness
Molly Gold ’21
Creative Director
LET’S TALK ABOUT SEXUAL ASSAULT:
Remy Teltser ’21
Managing Editor
*NAMES HAVE BEEN CHANGED FOR ANONYMITY
Recently, a study by the UN Women organization found that 97% of women have experienced sexual harassment. This, in addition to the murder of UK woman Sarah Everard, has sparked a global conversation surrounding women’s health as well as sexual assault and harassment awareness. Many Staples students have participated in this conversation via social media. This has been a platform for students, including *Kate, an anonymous sophomore girl, to share their stories and experiences connected with sexual assault. “I’ve continuously been oversexualized, called horrible names [and] forced to do things I don’t want to,” *Kate said. “I know it’s not as bad as many other girls who have been through worse. It’s just an almost everyday thing where boys will harass me and think it’s okay, [but] it’s not. It makes me feel like I’m not important and that I’m just this object for boys’ pleasure.” However, others feel that social media is ineffective in its ability to spread awareness. An anonymous senior, *Sophie, believes social media awareness will make the culture increasingly toxic. “I’ve seen a lot of girls sharing the 97% statistic and
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practically begging boys to understand it [and] to see themselves or their silence as part of an issue,” *Sophie said. “All I’ve seen in response is the mocking of or attempted debunking of real statistics and a real issue that basically every girl, or anyone perceived as female, has to go through.” These feelings of mockery are not solely unique to Sophie. Many female students have voiced that even during in-person conversations, their experiences and feelings are often invalidated by some of their peers. “It’s great that these things are finally coming out to light,” *Kate said. “Even still, boys are trying to invalidate women’s issues by saying they’re lying, but in reality it’s just women finally being comfortable enough to come out with their stories.” Some male students have taken this conversation as a means to educate themselves and participate in the conversation at hand. “I think that a lot of people are listening to other people sharing their stories,” Dean Moro ’21 said. “It’s a really important issue and I think that it’s taken very seriously, as it should be.” However, as a means to prevent this insensitivity from arising in the first place, the Westport Public Schools health department has tailored their sexual violence awareness program to begin in Kindergarten. Students begin their education by learning about personal boundaries and relationships, before the terms “sexual assault” and “sexual harassment” are even introduced in fourth grade, according to Department Chair Chris Wanner.
As students enter high school, their education becomes more specific, as they begin to learn about sexual assault in combination with drug and alcohol use, as well as the signs of healthy relationships. Students are taught by their health teachers, as well as guest speakers from resources such as the Sexual Assault Crisis Counseling and Education Center.
“I’m prioritizing sexual harassment and sexual violence as the content because its such a critical layer we need to address over and over and over again, especially as students are preparing for the next stage of their lives,” Wanner said.
Recently, the P.E. curriculum has changed with an additional gym class in order to prevent primarily single-sex junior health classes, as had occurred in the past due to the amount of gym electives. “You need to have a mix-gendered class, otherwise there’s no checks and balances,” health teacher Kelly Shamas said. Many students have found that this method of learning is valuable and effective, however, many feel that their sexual assault and harassment education begins and ends in health class. “I think that the health department does a really good job teaching about it,” Julia DiConza ’21 said. “But now that I’m a senior, I feel like I haven’t even heard about sexual assault at all in any of my classes.” Despite many students’ feelings that their health educa-
97% of women surveyed in a UN Women study have experienced sexual harassment.
sharing the 97% statistic and practically begging boys to understand it [and] to see themselves or their silence as part of the issue.”
- Sophie*
tion was effective, many are unaware or unsure of what defines sexual harassment and assault. “People have catcalled me before, but because I’m male, I wouldn’t classify that as harrassment,” Kyle*, an anonymous junior boy, said. While some students are calling for a more in-depth classroom education, they are also aware that the Staples community as a whole needs to redress its attitude towards sexual harassment. “[Sexual assault] can only decrease with strong education and giving women, men, nonbinary [people], etc. materials and strategies to defend themselves,” Isabel Tobin ’24 said. “I hope that Staples and other schools will present a kind and empathizing community to support the overwhelming need for education, maybe starting young. Censoring the real world isn’t going to protect them. Introducing them to the reality of the situation and then teaching them how to protect themselves from it is going to help.”
14| FEATURES Westport Pride unifies, educates community on LGBTQ+ issues
Poppy Livingstone ’21
Editor-In-Chief
In the fall of 2020, Westport resident Brian McGunagle posed the following questions to the greater Westport community: Who is the LGBTQ+ community? What do we look like? What would happen if we were to gather? The following winter, a group of 40 members of the LGBTQ+ community and its allies joined together, forming the organization now known as Westport Pride. “When we started, we were just asking questions,” McGunagle, founder of Westport Pride, said. “How do we educate not only our neighbors but our schools as well? How can we mentor others in the LGBTQ community, from children to adults [...]? How can we create an atmosphere for people to connect?” The organization hopes to take a holistic approach to aiding the LGBTQ+ community in Westport, dividing into five distinct committees with various short and long term goals. These groups range from the administrative, far-reach ing Advisory Committee to the specific and personal Mentorship Committee, which aims to create peer-led support groups for LGBTQ+ citizens.
Marjorie Almansi, who serves as the Education Chair for the group, works closely with students, teachers, administrators and other community members in order to bring about the systematic inclusion of LGBTQ+ issues in Westport’s schools and town as a whole.
“Ev ery single person we met with was incredibly supportive and excited about the prospect of positive changes within the school and the community at large,” Almansi said. “I am most excited about changing the environment in a long lasting and impactful way.”
The Education Committee has welcomed a number of Staples upperclassmen, such as Ben Zack ’21, to their monthly meetings, as Almansi emphasized the importance of student voices in the committee’s pursuits.
“[During the meetings] we discuss ways to improve awareness in the K-12 setting,” Zack said. “We discuss strategies around curriculum, education and messaging within the school systems to support the LGBTQ population.”
Zack looks forward to the committee’s plans to develop educational videos for the school system, informing students of all ages about LGBT issues and acceptance. In the long term, the organization
has even higher hopes for their impact on Westport’s community. “Given that Pride Month is in June, we are working on executing some events during that time, but really want to create and host Pride awareness events all year long,” Ria Rueda, Events Committee “...We are[...]educating people, creating acceptance and celebrating the LGBTQ community in our town.” - Ben Zack ’21 Chair and Advisory Council member, said. “I’m looking forward to working with our team to execute some great events to create a buzz and generate awareness of Westport Pride in the community.” The goals of the organization vary from the minute to the far-reaching. Future plans include a mural collaboration with MOCA Westport, a “Merchants of Pride” event partnering with various businesses to create Pridethemed products and, ultimately, a town-wide Pride event at the Levitt Pavilion. “I believe that we are working towards the very important mission of educating people, creating acceptance and celebrating the LGBTQ community in our town,” Zack said. “But even more importantly, we are setting the groundwork so that youth who are questioning have a place to turn, an organization that supports them and helps to reduce [...] the struggles they go through because of their fear of accepting who they are.”
Graphic by Poppy Livingstone ’21
GREENWICH PIPE BAND Ishan Prasad ’22 practices with the Greenwich Pipe Band, which performed at restaurants and parades before the pandemic struck.
humans of staples
Prasad performs bagpipes with passion, discovers artistic side
Lilly Weisz ’23
Assistant Creative Director
In misty Edinburgh, Scotland, a piper hoists a full set of Scottish Highland bagpipes. He pulls from the depths of his lungs to sound a traditional song’s robust notes. This is what Ishan Prasad ’22 heard when he first felt the great instrument’s lure on a seventh grade trip to Scotland while visiting relatives in neighboring England. Some students play piano or fiddle with a fiddle; Prasad tried both, yet nothing stuck until discovering the bagpipes. After months of requesting to play, his parents relented and he got his first practice chanter, a detached piece, similar to a flute, used by beginners and pipers practicing new music. Then, Prasad graduated to a full set of pipes, now owning two, one plastic and one wooden.
“What I enjoy most is being able to express and convey a very unique type of music,” he said.
Prasad has played the bagpipes for four years now. He isthe only New England piper his age he knows. He takes lessons and plays for the Greenwich Pipe Band, with which, in a non-COVID year, he performs in parades, restaurants and pubs around Fairfield County.
Of course, for the passionate piper, learning to play is an intensive process rife with challenges. Prasad must maneuver the heavy woodwind and blow deeply into the drones attached to the instrument’s bag, playing melody and harmony at the same time. He must also have deft fingers, especially for faster-paced music. “You need to be very, very good with your fingerwork in order to play well,” Prasad said. “Some of the tunes, like jigs and hornpipes, they can get very, very fast.” Prasad is motivated through these struggles by playing and listening to bagpipe music, which he profoundly appreciates. His favorite styles are piobaireachd and hornpipe. “It’s kind of funny because piobaireachd is insanely slow, it’s slumbering, it’s not very lively,” Prasad said. “And then hornpipe is the complete opposite where it’s really lively. It’s very fast paced and it’s a joy to listen to.” He’s also inspired by his favorites, such as Donald MacLeod and Stuart Liddell— not Stuart Little, he added with a smile. Their musical prowess reminds Prasad of his goal to perform as authentically and professionally as possible. Once COVID-19 ends, he plans to enter competitions. “I’ve been starting off with one of each [musical style] and then building off of that,” Prasad said, “and getting to more and more difficult tunes. And then just trying to work my technique to be the best it can.” Though describing himself primarily as a math and science person, Prasad views bagpipes as a vital artistic component to who he is as a person and to his daily routine. “I think that pipes is one of my defining characteristics,” he said. “It’s definitely shaped my identity, you know, a few ways. It’s the first instrument where I feel like I’ve been able to stick with it, even through the most difficult challenges.”
“What I enjoy most
- Ishan Prasad ’22
Thrifting rises in popularity as way to shop sustainably, express individuality
Lea Rivel ’22
Web Arts Editor
Lately, a method of shopping has been picking up popularity among Generation Z. Thrifting has long been a more affordable and sustainable way to shop, but now, it’s becoming a trend in youth culture.
With apps like TikTok popularizing wearing oneof-a-kind items and Depop giving anybody the platform to sell preloved pieces, the prospect of thrifting is becoming far more appealing and popular among young people.
Ava Haazen ’24 loves taking trips to Brooklyn to find unique and interesting clothing pieces that she wouldn’t find elsewhere. For her, it’s not just environmentally conscious, but also something that can be turned into a fun experience.
“Whenever I’m thrifting... [I] like to come up with bizarre, unrealistic stories that belong to each item,” Haazen said. “Maybe the pair of sneakers that [I] picked up belonged to an Olympic athlete. Or maybe that sequin and silk dress came from a wealthy woman who lived luxuriously.”
Many people have looked to buying clothes at thrift stores as a way to find unique, fashionable pieces and express individuality.
“When you thrift you typically find pieces that are one of a kind, or at least unique to our community at Staples and in Westport in general,” Chloe Chaple ’21 said.
But clothes aren’t the only thing that Staples students like to buy second hand. Alexia Abrams-Rivera ’22, self-proclaimed “book nerd,” enjoys going to the Westport Library book sales and various thrift stores in New York City to find new books and accessories she can use to display them. For her, there is magic to buying pieces that other people have owned. “Some one’s story with books and how it was crinkled, the folded pages, the coffee stains, the book smell of an old book is just so wonderful,” Abrams-Rivera said.
The Westport Book Shop also recently opened downtown with a variety of used books at low prices.
“I love reading and owning my own hard copy books, but it is unreasonable to spend so much mon -
ey at places like Barnes and Noble,” Amy Hogan ’22 said. Though everybody has their own reason for buying second hand items, one of the biggest ones is bringing awareness of the environmental impact of traditional shopping. “Beyond the uniqueness of finds, I’m really interested in the ethical side of thrifting,” Chaple said. “I’m able to avoid supporting companies that engage in “This might sound cheesy, but I like that everything you find is preowned; child labor, pollution, support of homophobic organizations and underpaying seamstresses.” Many popular “fast-fashion” companies nowadays, like Zara, everything has a H&M
story behind it.”
- Ava Haazen ’24 Photos by Eliza Barr ’21 and Fashion Nova use cheaper prices and quick shipping as a way to draw customers in, at the cost of good ethics and the environment. “[There are] brands that everyone seems to shop at nowadays because they think they’re getting a good deal, [but] it’s cheap for a reason,” Haazen said. “When you thrift, you can find better options for not a lot of money and they don’t involve themselves in these harmful practices.” Teens from all sorts of backgrounds value thrifting as a way to get clothes, books and accessories. They are able to find unique pieces, shop for cheaper and help protect the environment all at once. “This might sound cheesy, but I like that everything you find is preowned; everything has a story behind it[...]” Haazen said. “So many people decide to throw out old clothes when instead, you could donate them to thrift stores and give them another life.”
18 | ARTS Spring sparks fun new fashion trends
Julia Kasabian ’21
Staff Writer
Spring is coming closer and closer, and with it comes spring fashion. Sleeves get shorter, skirts and shorts replace pants and colors change from dark to light. As with every year, new trends emerge in the spring, and this is your guide to those trends.
PASTEL COLORS
A staple in spring fashion is, and will always be, pastels. Pastel colors epitomize spring, and while they look good on their own, they look even better together. Pair some complementary pastels in your outfits, such as pink and blue or green and yellow for a fun, fashion-forward look.
MIDI SKIRTS
One fun trend for this spring is midi skirts. Midi skirts hit at about the mid-calf region, which make these skirts great for chillier days in early spring. I pair my midi skirts most often with a cropped t-shirt for a relaxed daytime look, or with a fancy tank top for the evening. Midi skirts can be found at many retailers, such as Princess Polly or Urban Outfitters, but my favorites have come from online thrift stores such as ThredUp.
SLIP DRESSES
LIGHT WASH JEANS
Wearing light wash jeans is another great way to stay warmer on a brisk spring day. Jeans have been a staple in American fashion for many years, and they go with anything from sweatshirts to crop tops to cardigans. Bright colors pop against the light wash of the jeans, making your outfit stand out from the crowd. My favorite jeans come from Levi’s, but finding a good pair of jeans is an incredibly easy thing to do.
Another great spring style can be found in slip dresses. These dresses are easily found at stores such as Zara or Motel Rocks and can be worn alone or layered over a t-shirt or turtleneck. At these stores, slip dresses come in a variety of colors and patterns, so it’s easy to find one to your liking.
Photos contributed by Julia Kasabian ’21
EXPRESSION THROUGH JEWELRY Savvy Girling '23 (right) and Skylar Newman '23 (left) incorporate bold colors into jewelry to empower buyers and followers.
Photos by Sydney Chinitz '23 Girling, Newman promote individuality, expression through jewelry
Allison Gillman '23
Web Opinions Editor
The word “Acatalepsy” refers directly to the impossibility of conceiving of or comprehending something, a fitting description for the past year, which has marked an era where so much is unknown and numerous people feel trapped. Using the concept of Acatalepsy in jewelry-making, two ambitious business partners aim to combat feelings of isolation and melancholy. For Savannah Girling ’23 and Skylar Newman ’23, their newly-launched jewelry brand, Acatalepsy, is not just about creating beautiful and unique jewelry. The creators aim to spread messages of gratitude, self-love and positivity that promote emotional health in the face of adversity. “We want to show people that this isn’t just a business to make money,” Newman said. “We genuinely care and want to help people.” Drawing inspiration from social media platforms like Instagram and Pinterest, Girling and Newman use gold-filled chains and charms to create necklaces, all of which vary in design. From thinking out loud to drawing ideas on an iPad, they enjoy the versatility of their creative process. “A lot of times, we don’t even [begin to] make [the jewelry] until the charms come, and that’s when the creative energy is flowing,” Girling said. The two pour their time and energy into developing their Instagram account, where they regularly post. Girling manages the public account and spends around one to two hours each evening writing captions for meaningful and uplifting posts. Newman amplifies the visual aspects of each image. She makes edits to the photos to fashion a colorful appeal and uses photoshop to create collages, one of which is called “Limitless Life.”
Every post uses vibrant and metaphorical language to convey a message for the day, which is followed up by a description of the jewelry item(s) and the person in the photo. Common threads throughout Acatalepsy’s feed include reaffirmations of self-worth and strength, reminders to slow down every so often, reconstructions of perspective on life and open-ended questions left to personal interpretation.
“We should all reflect upon what we do for ourselves and how we make time for ourselves as we do for others,” Girling captioned Newman’s “Limitless Life” collage. “How do we show ourselves that we love us? How can you prove how much you love yourself with your thoughts, words and actions?” As the meaning behind each item of jewelry is open to interpretation, Newman described how, for her and Girling, the pieces would highlight facets of their personalities. “We create [the pieces] with an intent and a story behind them,” Newman said. “They are not just jewelry; it’s art we’re making [...] And with art, there is going to be your personality in it and your story behind it and who you are.” While incorporating aspects of themselves into each piece, the creators also hope for their buyers to find meaning in the jewelry in personal, unique and imaginative ways. “We want to spread the message that we’re here for anyone,” Newman said. “Once again, we’re all being positive and we’re all going through this together, so let’s take things as they come and appreciate the beauty.”
