Even though the Coldwater Literary Club is meant to be a place where students can focus on their creative prose and poetry, it’s a place I first found as home. The 2020-2021 school year was a strange experience, and when I entered the building as a sophomore, it was like the building was totally new to me. It was hard adjusting, but despite it being unfamiliar, I stayed late at school anyways.

I’d joined the club over zoom in my freshman year, and a surprisingly large amount of freshmen from my classes had joined. It was nice to see a lot of familiar faces. I made friends with the few juniors and seniors too; there were so few that the club seemed to be dying, until the horde of freshmen joined. I got comfortable quickly; it was a relaxed club, but what made it special was the fact that we were friends. Mr. Lai, the club advisor, was always easy to approach, and to this day I believe that he’s really helped shape my growth over the last few years.

I became friends with Dan, who also loved DnD (Dungeons and Dragons). He talked about it often, and after the DnD Icebreaker Mr. Lai had run, I found it interesting and joined NVOT Esports’ DnD Division.

Even after joining NVOT Esports, I continue to participate every Tuesday. I’m an officer of the club, and as an officer, I’ve participated in events, sent emails, interacted with the club regularly, and have given workshops on writing and magazine publishing-related topics.

I really am grateful to have joined Coldwater; without my experiences in Coldwater, I may not have grown as much as a person and have had the joy of working together with everyone on our personal writing journeys.

I’ve stayed at school until 6, 7 PM to help NVOT Esports. I love being at home, playing games by myself, eating snacks and listening to music at night, but nurturing this club has been one of my biggest commitments ever, and I don’t regret a single moment of it.

I’d started out as an officer of the DnD division, helping my friends Dan and Jo make sure the division runs smoothly. When they graduated and I became a junior, I’d found myself as the Division leader. It may seem strange as to why a tabletop RPG is listed under electronic sports, as it is neither electronic or a sport. However, it’s the same people we’re able to create a community for, and I love that. Many members of NVOT Esports don’t just join one division. Some may join both DnD and Jackbox, and others may play Valorant, League of Legends, and Super Smash Bros Ultimate (SSBU, for short). Not all divisions have to be competitive here, much like DnD, but they all are communities created by students for the students- and that’s beautiful.

When I stepped up for co-president, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to handle the responsibilities- but as soon as the school year started to roll, I could only put in the effort to make it happen. The first thing we did as a club was to prepare for the club fair. We only had two tables for more divisions than you could count on a hand, but we managed to make banners out of yardsticks and paper and decorations for each division. We even managed to bring in some monitors, and for the duration of the fair, there was always somebody versing the division leaders of our SSBU division with a small crowd to watch.

For anyone who missed our small table or those still wondering which divisions to join, we rented out the North Cafeteria and gave each division a table; everyone was able to see each division, instead of just Esports as a whole. I’d designed the flyers, taped them onto walls and doors, texted all my friends, and I stayed the duration of the event. There was always something to do, something to remind someone, someone to see- but the time flew by so fast that it was hard to recall everyone I’d met that day.

As Halloween approached, we decided we’d try our hands at Trunk or Treat, except the school was giving us tables instead of actual trunks. My co-president Ethan and I, along with Mr. Lai, decided to create a game that the kids would play through, over the course of 3 tables, and at the end they would get candy from “Grandma”. We worked together to create props to create a real town, and we had one of our officers dress up as a dragon and we created a fake fire using red and yellow lights. I spent time painting with the painting crew, helped make the “fire” work, set up the tables, create the cards for the kids, hand out fliers. As much as this was my project, this was everyone else’s too- and to create such a big event and see all of the kids happily “save the town” (play the game) made me realize that this is what doing something for the community really means.

Over the course of the year, our competitive teams competed in tournaments each season, and going to the finals with them fills me with a sense of pride that can only fill someone who’s worked in the background to make that happen. Even though we weren’t able to bring the Victoria Valorant (the first girls-only Esports team in NVOT) team to finals, I’m glad that I was able to help assemble and manage such a special experience for the girls in this mostly-male field.

Through the hardships and restful times, I’ve grown a lot not just as a leader but also as a person. I’ve learned the beauty of building communities and making projects that bring people together.

When I first came to Norwood Pantry to volunteer, I didn’t know where anything was. I struggled to find where just about anything was, and it took me hours to pack just a few bags. I was only there a few hours a week, and I figured that I would learn where everything was soon enough.

It was when I started volunteering to hand out hot meals on Fridays to the same people that it really cemented in my brain how heartwarmingly food brings people together. The same people who I packed bags for dropped by for hot meals, and bringing them their boxes let me see their faces. A name is just one thing, but when you attach a face, a voice, a personality to it- it becomes a person.

I don’t mind going out to the pantry anymore. I’ve learned where everything is, and I look forward to when hot meals start again so that I can see everyone again.

Besides coding, I often love to read and write for fun. I love exploring myself, the people around me, and the world through fiction. I love analyzing characters that catch my interest, which I’ve noticed to be often characters that often put their everything into their goals and need someone to lean on when things get rough. These kinds of characters are very interesting to analyze, from their reasons to working so hard to how it affects the people around them.

While some, like Mitsuki, from IDOLiSH7, believe that hard work is the way to a fulfilling life, he’s also told to “take some moderation”. Sometimes being good enough is good enough, and when another character, Yamato, “hands” Mitsuki this moderation to be used when he’s going through a tough time, he realizes that sometimes moderation can be a good way through life too.

Just like Mitsuki, I tend to think that putting my all into everything will lead to a more eventful and fulfilled life- but I’ve learned how Yamato’s advised moderation can be used when I’m feeling burned out too.