On a typical day, Thomas completes a variety of tasks in order to keep the store clean and organized. “I do a lot of upkeep of the store [and] interacting with customers like [putting] flowers outside of our store,” he said. “It’s a lot of maintaining, tagging products and organizing.”

Thomas’s favorite part about working at Nature Gallery is helping customers. The conversations that he has with customers makes his work more meaningful. “I was working with this woman to help her find three different items that she wanted to match,” he said. “We had to go through a lot of different items and define pieces that all matched. It was definitely nice to be able to spend time with customers and it was rewarding to be able to find something that fit for her and be able to help her with that.”

As his work for Nature Gallery nears its end, Thomas is thankful that he was given the opportunity to work for the store. Thomas recommends working a summer job to other students.

“I feel like it’s a really good experience,” he said. “Not only does it help you not waste away your summer at home, it gives you experience for further jobs, some good life skills and it’s actually pretty exciting.”

The program consisted of various educational activities about climate change as well as opportunities for students to explore Copenhagen. “We stayed in a dorm and we had classes in the morning for three hours,” Green said. “We had cultural activities and excursions in the afternoon and evening, so we got to experience Danish culture while also learning about policy and advocacy.”

Through her time in the program, Green gained valuable insights on how she can become a part of the solution to climate change. “Going on the program really helped me figure out what I want to study in college,” she said. “One day we went to the United Nations (UN) city, which is a spot in Copenhagen where there are a bunch of different branches of the UN that meet and work there. Seeing those jobs really helped me realize what it is I want to do, or at least what I want to study in college.” All that Green has learned from the program has inspired her to start working in climate advocacy back home in Palo Alto. “I am working with the Cloud Project, which is a student-led group with Gunn and Paly students where we teach kids in fourth through eighth grade about climate change and the environment in general,” she said.

Looking into the future, Green hopes that the United States can follow in the footsteps of Denmark and enact more radical change when it comes to climate policy. “Denmark is one of the leading nations in climate policy and sustainability,” she said. “Going somewhere where that is a focus on pretty much everyone’s mind is really inspiring.”

Though Chiang noted that it would be difficult for her to name a favorite piece she performed, there is one song that holds a unique sentimental value for her. “We sang this song on tour [which] was a mash up between ‘I Love You’ and ‘What a Wonderful World’,” she said. “I think that song has a special place just because it’s the song that the seniors sing their solos.
It’s kind of special because their moment is saying goodbye, but also where we kind of get to
support them, their voices and personalities in general.”

Parak’s earliest memories of celebrating Ramadan stem from her visits to her grandparents’ house. “When Ramadan was in the summer, we used to always go to Canada, where my grandparents live,” she said. “We would celebrate with our whole family and fast together. At the end of Ramadan, there’s this big party called Eid al-Fitr. We’d do morning prayers and then celebrate with all of our family members.”

One of the most significant parts of Ramadan is the act of fasting, which one does from sunrise to sunset for 30 days, breaking the fast in the evening. Parak was eager to begin the practice of fasting for Ramadan at an early age. “Normally, you’re supposed to start around puberty,” she said. “I started at around 13, but some people start later or earlier. I remember as a kid, I always really wanted to fast, so my parents would let me [fast for] half of the day.”

Parak had a harder time fasting during the shelter-in-place period. Now that many COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted, however, Parak noticed that fasting has become easier. “It was definitely hard during the pandemic when there’s nothing really to do,” she said. “Now, I’d say [fasting is] easier [because I’m] surrounding myself more with people who are fasting.”

Despite the hardships that come with fasting, Parak finds the process to be a valuable experience for her entire family. “We’ve accomplished so much, especially after the 30 days are over,” she said.

For those who want to try out fasting, Parak offers advice on how to make it through the day. “Eat a big meal,” she said. “Try to keep yourself occupied to get your mind off of thinking about food.”

Andrew Garfield is nominated for Best Leading Actor in the musical biopic “tick, tick…BOOM!” of Jonathan Larson, a down-on-his-luck aspiring theater director. Based on a true story, the film follows Larson as he works at a diner and attempts to actualize
his dreams of putting his musical on Broadway before turning 30.

BEST ACTRESS

Jessica Chastain is nominated for Best Leading Actress in the biopic “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.” The film follows Chastain as Tamara Faye Lavalley, documenting her rise and eventual fall as a pioneer of the televangelist movement in the 1980s.

COSTUME DESIGN

Nominated this year for Best Costume Design are Massimo Cantini Parrini and Jacqueline Durran for “Cyrano,” an adaptation of the classic play. The movie stars Peter Dinklage as the titular character. The film, set in 17th century Paris, incorporates the fashion of the era with grand gowns and detailed coats that bring the movie to life.

BEST PICTURE

“Drive My Car” is a 2021 Best Picture nominee directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. Based on the short story by acclaimed Japanese author Haruki Murakami, the film follows a theater director by the name of Y?suke Kafuku as he discusses his relationship with his wife Oto, a screenwriter, during a long car ride.

Sitting in a Zoom meeting, Reid is quick to tell a joke and impart a smile. She sports a black beanie, which her dark brown hair flows out of before laying gently on her shoulders. An assortment of silver rings wrap around her fingers, matching the gray color of her eyes. Yet what stands out most about Reid are her patriotic red and white fingernails. “There’s a salon here, so you can get your nails done or get a haircut,” she said. “There were a lot of translator apps involved so it ended up a little unsymmetrical but that is totally fine.”

As a competitor in the Biathlon, Reid skis with her rifle on her shoulders before stopping to take aim at targets. Reid explained the dichotomy between the two components of the event. “It’s a cross country ski race combined with precision marksmanship shooting, where you’re penalized if you miss a shot,” she said. “It could be a time penalty or it could be a skiing penalty. At the end of the race, the person with the shortest time wins.”

Though Reid now spends most of the year training for the Biathlon in the frigid mountains, many of her fondest memories of athletic competition start from participating in cross country at Gunn. “I would go over to Los Altos Hills and train and then come back and do the running training in the afternoon with my team,” she said.

As Reid ran under the sweltering California sun, she formed connections with her team. Reid noted how learning to be a part of a team helped her as she progressed further as an athlete. “That was the first time that I trained with a group,” she said. “Running has a lot of similarities to biathlon. It’s cardiovascular and it has a team aspect to it, so that was really foundational for me.”

Reid also competed in cross country skiing during high school, where she soon became one of the best high school skiers in the nation. During these four years Reid received numerous accolades, including winning two Junior National Championships and becoming a three time All-American skier.

Reid’s success as a high school skier culminated in her being recruited to ski for the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder). At CU Boulder, she continued to excel in cross country skiing, becoming one of the most decorated skiers in the program’s history.

Yet, when the skis came off, Reid struggled at times to manage the grueling schedule of a student athlete competing at the top of her sport. Oftentimes, Reid would finish with a strenuous training session only to be greeted with a pile of homework when she got home. It was instances like these that taught Reid the importance of treating yourself with kindness. “I think personal forgiveness is important,” she said. “Sometimes you’re gonna miss the workout. Sometimes you’re going to miss your homework. You need to forgive yourself when that happens.”

It wasn’t until her senior year at CU Boulder when Reid was first introduced to the biathlon. After her grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimers, Reid was given his old biathlon rifle. This moment inspired Reid to begin training for the Biathlon event in the 2018 Olympics.

The journey to the Olympics, however, wasn’t easy. Though Reid was already a strong cross-country skier, she had to learn rifle shooting from scratch. Additionally, to qualify for the Olympics, Reid had to go through a rigorous set of preliminary races. In order to make the team Reid had to first qualify in the American race in December. Qualifying for this race would allow her to compete in the European qualification round, after which she was offered a spot on the Olympic team.

Reflecting on the recent 2022 Olympic Games, Reid remains ambivalent. While she enjoyed competing in the Biathlon among some of the best in the world, the COVID-19 restrictions in place hindered her overall experience. “We’re in a closed loop,” Reid said. “We can’t wander, which has really been frustrating for a lot of us. I think some of us have gotten a little stir crazy.”

When Reid is competing, all of these other factors surrounding the Olympics disappear in her mind. Instead, she focuses on the minute details, like the way that her ski cuts through the snow and the feeling of the rifle against her shoulder. It is in focusing on these details that Reid finds the calmness needed to compete at the highest level. “When you actually get out there and you are doing your sport, it’s the same there as it is in every place,” she said. “The shooting mounts are there, the targets are there, the rifle rocks are there, the ski trails are there, and just taking all of your external stress and refocusing it on to this is what I do. This is what I’m good at. This is why I’m here.”

Even though Reid has largely been successful in dealing with pressure that comes with the Olympics, she still feels that she is currently in a slump in regards to the rifle shooting aspect of the Biathlon. “Overtime I think you hit a point where you either have to go through a slump and reassess yourself, or you end up quitting,” she said. “I’ve actually kind of hit that this year. My standing shooting has been rocky for a couple months now, and it’s definitely in my head because I can shoot in specific races but not others.”

A lifetime of athletics, however, has taught Reid the importance of having a positive mindset. “It can be really hard to look at a result—be it sports or be it a grade—and untangle it from what actually went on there,” she said. “It’s important to continually tell yourself out loud that results are not the same as performance. In the end, all that matters is that you did the best you could even if not everything went to plan.”

Classical singing encompasses both art song and opera. De Silva explained the differences between the two subgenres. “Think of it as the difference between Dua Lipa and musical theater,” he said. “Dua Lipa writes these one-off songs that don’t necessarily have a narrative that binds them together, whereas musical theater is more like opera.” De Silva participates in art song because, as a teenager, his vocal cords are not mature enough to sing opera safely.

One of de Silva’s most significant experiences singing classical music happened on Nov. 30, 2020, when he participated in a radio program called “From the Top.” As a part of the program, de Silva was given the opportunity to sing two pieces for patients at the Colorado Children’s Hospital via Zoom. “It’s really for the children who are there year-round or as longterm patients,” he said.

Looking back, de Silva is grateful that he got the opportunity to use his singing to help other people. “The kids loved the music,” he said. “It was calming during what was a very hectic time for them. I think that was the first time I’d ever seen music that comes from me contributing to the welfare of society.”

All of the hours spent rehearsing and fine-tuning his voice have allowed de Silva to gain a more nuanced appreciation of classical singing. This new eye for detail within the music has made de Silva’s work more rewarding. “I know the craft that goes into it,” he said. “I know what it looks like to collaborate with other artists and musicians. It is so nonlinear compared to math and what [math teacher David] Deggeller teaches us in calculus. I think I have so much more respect now for how [music] works.”

Despite all of the respect and admiration that de Silva has for classical singing, he is also cognizant of its flaws. The most prominent among these are classical singing’s failures to adequately convey the stories of people of color (POC). De Silva was particularly angered over an opera called “The Professor’s” by George V. Ze, which depicted Sri Lankan people as primitive. “It was so problematic seeing that,” he said. “My eyes went wide when I realized, ‘Oh, my god, is this really how my art form thinks of me? I just never had any personal experience with that until after seeing that opera.”

To help address the lack of diversity in classical singing, de Silva spoke at TEDx Gunn last year, where he delivered a speech championing the importance of diversity in performance arts. Looking into the future, de Silva remains hopeful that classical singing will become more diverse. “There’s more consumption of new works that tell different stories of POC and will thus feature POC,” he said.

De Silva is still unsure of whether he will fully continue singing classical music in the future. “I am going out to auditions for two conservatories in the month of March,” he said. “But, I don’t actually think that I’m necessarily going to go to a music school.”

Instead, de Silva hopes to pursue both music and his academic interests. “What I find highly likely is [that] I’m going to go into an [undergraduate school] for an academic subject, but then study music at a local conservatory and get as close as I can to getting a bachelor’s degree in music,” he said.