Unlike the majority of public high schools, my school is too small to offer organized music programs. This lack of music classes or an after school band led me to look in unorthodox places to express my musical creativity, as well as encouraging me to explore many different genres and artists I would never have given a second glance before. For almost nine years now, I have been playing the cello. For the first seven of those years, my repertoire was strictly classical music. Ètudes, chorales, and sonatas made up the majority of what I knew how to play, and the rest was all technique exercises. At first, having such a limited range of songs I could perform did not bother me, but at the start of my freshman year, I began to realize that I could-- and should-- broaden my musical horizons. About halfway through September of that year, I discovered a club at my school called the Radio Club. Radio Club was a sort of spiritual awakening for me. Being around a large group of people, all with vastly varying music taste, made me realize that maybe I could be more than just a frustrated classical cellist. I began building playlists with my fellow club members, and listening to anything and everything they recommended. There was so much music to listen to, and I wanted to listen to it all. Over the past four years, my music taste went from three genres to "if I like the song, it goes on my playlist". As my music taste expanded, so did my desire to learn different kinds of music on the cello. I began teaching myself music that ranged from death metal to 2000's pop, at first starting with sheet music and then eventually only relying on my own ears. I stopped focusing so much on technique and started paying more attention to the raw emotion I could convey with all the new music I was learning. At the studio where I took lessons, I was encouraged by my instructors to keep learning new music from a variety of genres. Unfortunately, during the summer before my junior year, I switched to taking private cello lessons from a classical strings teacher. There were so many songs I wanted to learn and perform, but all the same dusty, stuffy technique exercises came back to haunt me, and for a brief time I was forced to turn back to classical music. In the fall, right after junior year began, my younger brother's guitar teacher started a rock band with some of the other young musicians from the studio. At first I was afraid to join, because while I could play many different types of music, cello is generally not an instrument seen in any kind of rock band. My brother was already a part of the band, so I wound up sitting in on a few of their practice sessions. During one such session, Bob, the guitar teacher, handed me a paper with some notes on it and told me I could join in if I wanted to. Now, a little over a year and three successful concerts later, I'm still part of the band. And for over three years I've been part of the Radio Club, even making enough of an impact to have become a co-president of the club for two of those years. Although I will most likely not be able to remain a part of these wonderful groups after I graduate, I will continue to hold music close to my heart through college and into my adult life.

Minecraft was my first PC video game. I started playing Minecraft when I was five or six years old, and I still keep a restored copy of my original world. As a child, one of the things I loved about the game was the freedom it allowed me to have. In my eyes, the only limitation was that nothing could be circular... When I play Minecraft now, I normally do not have a precise goal in mind. I usually just start a new world and build the first thing that comes to mind. In one of my longer-running worlds, I started building a giant castle. I did not have a clear floor plan in mind when I started, and I am still just making it up as I go. I honestly have no idea if I will ever finish this castle, but having a little sandbox world in which I can just fly by the seat of my pants and create things with no goal in mind is very relaxing. The game's virtually limitless maps allow for limitless creativity. Building structures in Minecraft is almost an art form at this point, with players building superbases that take literal years to complete, and even giant pixel art canvases. Many players, myself included, want to push the creative boundaries of the game, and use blocks in innovative ways to create new textures and patterns. The game promotes abstract thinking and complex problem solving on the gamer's part. Even if you are not using Creative Mode, you still have to think creatively to stay safe in Survival. Another reason why I love the game is because it reminds me of Legos. While Legos have more shape variety, the idea is still the same. A player can build whatever they want, just like someone could build whatever they want from Legos. The game gives the players freedom; even with shape restraints, it is possible to build and design architectural masterpieces. Someone could even theoretically build their dream house in Minecraft, then refine it in another program later. You could even create models based of something built in Minecraft in real life by utilizing the helpful 1:1:1 block ratios built into the game. I feel very lucky to have been active on Minecraft for as long as I have. I have seen the changes the game has gone through over the years and the innovations and expansions made. I am very pleased that the designers have improved the game while maintaining the original blocky charm. I hope that this game will continue to inspire people to create, as it has inspired me, for many years to come.

| Fish Hook | Spade | Acrylic | Twine | | Diamond | Lever | Amethyst | Thread | | Alpaca | Hemp | Stake | Saddle | | Garnet | Peat Moss | Aquamarine | Butterfly | Yellow (Straightforward): "Birthstones" - Amethyst, Aquamarine, Diamond, Garnet. Green: "Garden Shed Essentials" - Spade, Twine, Stake, Peat Moss. Blue: "Crocheter's Hoard" - Acrylic, Thread, Alpaca, Hemp. Purple (Tricky): "Earring Types" - Fish Hook, Lever, Saddle, Butterfly. Connections is a game that sorts unrelated words into categories. Sometimes, two words may seem connected, but are not actually related. Some days I struggle to sort the words out, especially when some are similar. That is why in my puzzle I included words that might confuse people, such as having "Spade" and "Diamond", and "Hemp" and "Twine". My word choices reflect my hobbies. For example, the earring types category represents my love of jewelry making and collecting. Different earring closure types can help accent a specific look or style of earring. People that may not be as interested in jewelry might not be able to solve that category at first. The gardening category stems from my rediscovered love for gardening. During my freshman year of high school, my Agriscience teacher had the students participate in an SAE, or supervised agricultural experience. My SAE was building a garden and irrigation system. I use peat moss as a growing medium and to support water retention-- this is Arizona after all! Spades can be used for mixing air into soil. Stakes and twine are what I used to hold up my tomato plants. "Crocheter's Hoard" is a category based on my mother's crocheting habits. She was the one who actually taught me how to crochet. Different kinds of yarn are used for different things. Wool and alpaca are used for winter blankets and thick coats, acrylic is lighter and can be used for scarves, and thin threads can be used to make lace. You can use thicker, coarser materials for dishcloths and rugs. The birthstones category stems from an older hobby of mine. I have always loved collecting rocks, and I find different cultures' beliefs about precious stones fascinating. Birthstones have special significance in many cultures, and can also make meaningful gifts. The garnet is for January, diamond is for April, aquamarine is for March, and amethyst is for February.

I have been passionate about books, literature especially, for as long as I can remember. When I was younger, my parents would read to me. In fact, one of my earliest memories is of my father reading Sir Terry Pratchett's short story "Where's My Cow?" to me. Over time, I have learned that books should not be judged by their content, but by how that content affects those who read it. Almost all narrative books-- whether they are fantasy, science fiction, historical fiction, or even autobiographies-- have a lesson the reader is supposed to learn from them. Every book that has a clear plot also has a lesson, or a set of morals and values that are demonstrated throughout the text. The late Sir Terry Pratchett is, was, and always will be one of my favorite authors, and I believe his writing style has influenced my own. The lessons and morals I've learned from reading his books have also shaped me as a person. In his Discworld series, the people of the Discworld are incredibly diverse. There are all kinds of humans, dwarfs, trolls, witches, goblins, vampires, werewolves, and fairy folk on the Disc. Over the course of the series, they all learn to work and live together in something resembling harmony, working towards an inclusive and modern future. I firmly believe that art and writing should be diverse and inclusive, and this has become a part of my core values. No matter what I do in life, I know I will never turn away from an idea just because the person who proposed it is different than I am. Many of Pratchett's books are about characters who want to do something that has never been done before. In "Soul Music", the main character, a musician named Buddy, starts the Discworld's first rock and roll band. In "Equal Rites", a woman named Eskarina sets out to become the world's first female wizard. In "The Truth", the young writer William de Worde starts the first newspaper in Ankh-Morpork. All these characters face backlash at first, but eventually succeed in achieving their goals and changing the course of the Discworld's future. Innovation can only happen through time, thought, and testing. I know that even if I face an uphill journey to my goals, with enough perseverance, I can reach those goals eventually. Pratchett's books also present real-world ideas in humorous yet meaningful ways. In many of his books, Pratchett's characters face political or social problems much larger than themselves, but because they stay calm and keep a light perspective, they are able to overcome them. Because of this, I believe that approaching a problem with a level head and a smile is the best way to conquer it. Throughout highschool, this has kept me mostly sane, and has definitely helped me feel confident enough to continue my educational journey. As an adult, I will continue to strive to look at daunting situations in positive ways, and calmly approach issues that arise in my life as best as I can. Books are some of the most incredible objects on the planet. They can contain the knowledge of anything and everything. If someone wants to learn something new-- about a certain subject or period of history, the world or society, or even just themself-- books are a good place to start.

Building the future of the world seems like a daunting task, but building one's own future is a good place to start. Teachers and parents often tell today's youth that Gen Z is going to "fix the world". I have heard it from plenty of people, and they make it sound so much larger and more frightening than it is. Changing the world is not about reshaping the whole future all at once, it is about shaping the way people think, one person-- or work of art-- at a time. I believe that creating a better tomorrow for everyone is only possible if everyone strives to make their own tomorrow better. That could mean a person finally doing something they have always wanted to do. It could mean someone offering aid to someone else in need. After I get through college and begin a successful, financially stable career, one of my goals is to give back to the community. I would fund public works projects outside of what is taken as tax dollars. I would donate regularly to homeless shelters and food banks. I would help fund small extracurricular programs in schools near where I live. I could also use my future career in graphic design to promote the spread of charity in the community. Art can connect people in unimaginable ways, and can sometimes portray a message better than a speech or an essay. By spreading the knowledge of others' situations through art and photography, more people could have a better understanding of what others are going through. Visually impactful designs can evoke sympathy in people in the community, and can make them want to pitch in and help people in need. My goal in life is to help others not only through charity, but also through my dream profession. I want my art to inspire people to do good in their community. I want to create designs that bring hope and emotion to the people who see them. I want to bring awareness to issues in our society, to the daily struggles people go through, and I want to cause people to feel empathy for others. I truly want to help change the direction of society by pointing people down a better, more accepting and understanding path. And that path is paved with art.