Uniqueness

Naren Sivasankar ’23

Contributor

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Moreover, I noticed that while my peers were very outgoing and had an easy time socializing with others, I found communication and social interactions challenging. I was the type of person who preferred to chill in their room instead of having a huge blast at parties. I turned out to be a follower rather than a leader.

Often, I would hear people have conversations about topics that I could not relate to and did not apply to how I spent time outside of school. It was hard for me to contribute to these conversations, to the point when all my friends were fluently conversing with each other, and I would be the odd one out. I would then think to myself, “Why am I even

Students were in classrooms, hoodies were out, and the pandemic was long forgotten. Hockey broke into the finals against Garden City, and Winter Sports Day gave a well-deserved break to the students. We were also witness to student achievements in debate with many debaters qualifying for nationals’ tournaments and even international speech tournaments.

Volleyball and basketball re-entered the gymnasiums, and rugby and ultimate returned to the football fields.

The Class of ’23 played their fashion show and prepared for their graduation. The Bing Crosby saw rising stars of Tristian Whelan ’26, Thomas Basta ’25, and Hussian Syed ’24 taking the stage alongside Zach Sadowski ’26 (from class 9-3) who proved victorious in the Paul Herriott Spelling Bee.

Ryan Waller and James Chapman, as Team Lego, were elected to Student Council.

The dramatic society’s 13 Past Midnight proved to be a smashing success, reviving the former glory of St. Paul’s theatre with stunning performances from Ilia Mehr-Bakhsh, Jackson Lachaine, Oscar Lavitt, Bradley Barrientos, and Caleb Pereira who took centre-erstage as grade 12 students in lead roles.

St. Paul’s High School is on a path of renewal. As new students enter the school, we welcome new voices and new opportunities. In every generation, there is an event that shakes the world. For us, it was COVID-19. With the world shaken, however, fruits are sure to fall. These occasions gave St. Paul’s the chance to rebuild better. here?” Whenever I tried to initiate a conversation, it would be an exchange of “Hi” and “How are you doing?,” at most and then die down not even a second later.

I feel and think differently, and have a different mentality than most, which played a role in my feeling emotionally and mentally distant from everyone else and the activities they partook in. Many of the barriers that I faced in my life ultimately lead to the birth of my YouTube channel “Twenty. Productions” (make sure to like and subscribe if you haven’t already).

I began taking interest in filmmaking, photography, and coding. When I started the channel, the meaning behind it was very simple: I wanted to record an event and upload it to a platform so people could watch it. But now, it is evolving into something more for me because communication and social interactions were major obstacles throughout my life. I use the channel to visually tell fluent stories. Filmmaking, along with other camera work involving sports, led to me having detailed and engaging conversations with two of my close friends, Luke Perrett ’24 and Ron Cailo ’23.

As the year progressed and I continued to pursue my passions and work, it established me as “the lone wolf of the pack.” I am a person who is unique, one of a kind and stands out from the rest, and this label is symbolic of who I am as an individual.

Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. Some people may be social butterflies whilst others might prefer to spend time alone. Ultimately, you are destined to only be yourself. Your personality, strengths, interests, and other aspects are what make you unique. Nobody should have to change any aspect of themselves just to gain approval or validation from another person or a group of people. In the long run, it is a million times better to stand out than to conform with the crowd. To anyone who faces any kind of barrier, just remember you are unique and brilliant the way you are and be comfortable being yourself.

All in all, my journey at St. Paul’s drew me out of my shell and encouraged me to take the strides to become the best version of myself. I am blessed to have great friends alongside an amazing support system who helped me thrive.

From a young child diagnosed with autism to a high school senior in the graduating class of 2023, I am honoured to say that I have come a long way and I will continue to make my impact. I do plan to remain behind the scenes as my privacy means a great deal to me. I strongly feel that I have left my mark on St. Paul’s and I am glad you many of you were here to witness it. Thank you, St. Paul’s, for everything in the past four years.

Luke Perrett ’24 Sports Editor

At St. Paul’s, grade 11 students take Religion 45S where they learn about a handful of major world religions: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism. A major part of the class is the annual “Faith Roadshow,” where all grade 11 students visit various houses of worship around the city. This year, the students visited three places: the Winnipeg South Sikh Centre, the Dr. Raj Pandey Hindu Centre, and Temple Shalom.

The morning began with the visit to the Winnipeg South Sikh Centre where students learned about Sikhism from Mr. Rajinder. Students were required to cover their hair with cloth upon entering. In the Sikh faith, covering your hair is important as it is a sign of respect for the sacred text, and the acknowledgement of a higher presence. Following the presentation, some students were able to see the sacred Sikh text, the Siri Guru Granth Sahib. Before leaving for the next house of worship, students were fed the traditional food Pakora, a fritter consisting of potatoes and onion, which is seasoned in gram flour and then deep fried. brought into a hall filled with statues of deities. Mr. Kirit Thakrar and Priest Venkat Machiraju answered many questions from students about a broad range of topics. One question that was remarkably interesting was “Why are there swastikas everywhere?” The hosts provided a particularly good response, explaining how, when a swastika lays flat, it is a symbol of prosperity and good luck. However, the Nazis used the sacred symbol in the wrong way, causing confusion about its meaning. Following the question period, students were fed an unbelievably delicious lunch, consisting of naan, Chana Aloo (potato chickpea) curry, and rice. same synagogue prompted great discussion between Rabbi Finkel and students, as he explained the differences between the different branches of Judaism. Rabbi Finkel explained how in the past, relations between different denominations of Judaism (especially involving reform) have not been pleasant, and that there was a lack of respect. However, he explained that he hopes to continue repairing relations between all denominations of Judaism.

The next house of worship we visisted was the Dr. Raj Pandey Hindu Centre. Unlike the Sikh centre, students did not have to cover their hair, but had to remove their shoes before entering the temple. Students were