The high school boys proudly display their kites. Each of them picked out a design of their favorite Chinese zodiac animal.
The National Chinese Honor Society (NCHS) hosted its inaugural High School Chinese Culture Party on April 3. At the event, students enjoyed a Chinese rendition of musical chairs, decorated and flew kites and feasted on malatang.
President Yujun Piao, inspired by traditional Chinese childhood activities, designed the program with his fellow members. “Kite flying is an important cultural activity created over 2,000 years ago and is still endorsed by many Chinese today. It symbolizes good fortune, longevity, health, and is enjoyed in cultural holidays like Zhongqiujie and Lunar New Year,” said Piao.
“The first activity was musical chairs, but with Chinese music. We had a lot of fun, especially because the music was exciting, and although I didn’t win, I was very happy to see everyone engaged in the moment,” said junior Yujun Piao, the president of NCHS. (Alex Seo)Sophomore Justin Huh holds up his kite, eager to decorate it. “I really enjoy flying kites, and this event allowed me to reclaim the joy that I felt in childhood,” said Huh. (Alex Seo)“I demonstrated how to fly the kite to the kids who had never flown the kite before, since I used to do so when I was a kid. I felt very cheerful while my kite model was flying high in the sky. I felt like I became a child,” said Ms. Zhu, Chinese teacher. (Alex Seo)Hungry after four laps across the field to fly kites, junior Justin Son devours his second serving of malatang. “After running around for over 30 minutes playing with kites, we all gathered around the picnic table and ate malatang. Personally, the malatang felt way hotter than I was used to, but it was still delicious,” said Son. (Alex Seo)Juniors Liwen Wang and Sally Lee carefully dip their brushes and paint their kite with neon colors. Together, they anticipate flying their Chinese traditional kites together. (Alex Seo)Juniors Belle Kim and Liwen Wang sweat profusely as they slurp down their malatang. The spicy mala flavor stains their lips a bright hue of red. (Alex Seo)Junior Yujun Piao cheers up sophomore CJ Park as he carefully untangles the kite string. “My very first attempt at flying the kite failed because I was too slow. But Yujun encouraged me to try again, and I was able to succeed,” said Park. (Alex Seo)Junior Justin Son sprints across the court with his kite. Its tail trails behind him as the wind keeps it aloft. (alex se)Junior Jayden Hayward takes a huge clump of noodles and places them into her cup.“I loved catching up with students from other grades when we ate malatang together,” said Hayward. (Alex Seo)Juniors Ellen Cho, Liwen Wang and Belle Kim boast their completed kites. Their finished design included all of their favorite elements, like flowers and monkeys. (Alex Seo)Sophomore Joe Chambless giddily runs through the grass as he learns how to fly a kite for the first time. After many tries, he succeeds in keeping the kite afloat. (Alex Seo)“We learned how to make and fly the kite. One of the students gave me their kite to fly. Since I haven’t flown the kite for a long time, it was a good opportunity to remember my childhood,” NCHS advisor and Chinese teacher Mr. Zhao said. (Alex Seo)High schoolers burst into laughter as junior Jayden Hayward sneakily steals the chair. This fast maneuver leaves sophomore Mary Cho seatless. (Alex Seo)Paintbrush in hand, Junior Ellen Cho precisely colors in the flower petals on the kite. She adds her creative flair by adding more flowers to the fabric. (Alex Seo)“When we played musical chairs, it was as if we turned into sharks preying on dinner. The game was high stakes, and I really wanted to win the boba tea,” said junior Sally Lee. (Alex Seo)
Jasmine Lee joins the newsroom for her final year of high school. She spent three and a half long years in Shanghai because of her father’s job. Not a big fan of the city, she still misses the friends she made in China. Senior year is not Jasmine’s first foray in the media. She worked on the school broadcasting club at her middle school in Seoul, in a program akin to JBS. And in Shanghai, Jasmine wrote school news at her former campus, SMIC. In the past, Jasmine was fluent in Chinese, but now she claims her proficiency dropped. Still, she steps up to the challenge and joins AP Chinese with Mr. Zhao.
Lily Lee returns to the staff with her wide smile and luscious hair. As she watches the clock tick, she reflects on whether or not her name will make a sports banner in the Jetnasium before graduation. Besides fame and glory in the gym, she hopes to leave her mark on the Jets Flyover before her departure. You’ll catch her on the court shooting hoops or buzzing around school on the lookout for mural locations. Nonetheless, she takes great pride in her work ethic and her “tall” stature.
Alex Seo (finally) joins the Journalism class in his sophomore year as the youngest editor on the staff (a.k.a. baby editor). His enthusiasm for Flyover spreads to his friends every Friday when he shares school news and local stories. After writing 10,000 different captions and 20,000 sports articles, he now plans to draft more in-depth feature and opinion pieces. He can’t wait to develop as a writer, an editor, and a sophomore this year.
