We’ll be back after midterms. See you guys then!

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Not everyone is perfect. Whenever I end up thinking about my flaws, I always come back to a certain lyric that helps me realize that that’s okay.

“We’re all imperfect in a perfect way.” – Witt Lowry

In a way, that is my own personal mantra. By remembering that simple line, I see that although I may have weaknesses, that doesn’t mean I don’t have my strengths either. Over the course of times, specifically 18 years, I have come to figure myself out. I am not the best singer; I have terrible time management; I am lazy, etc. Though, out of all that, I see that I am me. And with myself comes a plethora of other traits that I can actually be proud of.

Without darkness, what can be considered light? Thanks to my flaws, I am able to see the good. Ever since I was young, I was raise a Buddhist by my family. Especially with my grandmother around, I became very aware of my religion. Though, even more than that, beyond religion, the moral lessons I learned transcended any type of devotion to the idea of gods, goddesses, saints, etc.

Currently, the religious leader of the Tibetan people, my people, is His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso. First name being the same aside (which is a commonality shared by many Tibetans with His Holiness especially those in my generation), it is hard for me to imagine every being like him. What is even more shocking is his immense humility. As the 14th Dalai Lama, he is basically at the top of the religious hierarchy in not just Tibetan Buddhism, but Buddhism in general. Yet, he is able to honestly say

“I feel that I am a Buddhist monk, not the Dalai Lama. Most people describe me as a Nobel Laureate. Many invite me because I am a Nobel Laureate and not because I am a monk or the Dalai Lama.” – His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Of all the great traits and accolades he possesses, that is the most notable to me. Nowadays, too many people, especially the youth, act as if they are entitled to things and as if they are superior in some way or another. Somehow, musical interests, clothing choices, what one has or does not, all too much define a person when it should be their character that is judged, not their external factors. The Dalai Lama preaches a value that is irreligious and just pure humane, that we are all human.

While he himself is a Buddhist, he has the compassion to look beyond that and is able to form bonds and friendship regardless of gender, race, orientation, religion, etc. He is truly all-accepting, and that is what I aspire to be.

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness. – His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Regardless of affiliation, love and compassion is and should be universal. So even though I may not be perfect, I am the best me as can be, as long as I keep in mind the importance of love and compassion.  

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The 2017 NFL Playoffs has been one of the worst in recent memory. Out of the ten games played so far, eight of them have been blowouts by an average margin of 17.5 points. This includes the two conference championship games on January 22nd, where the Atlanta Falcons defeated the Green Bay Packers 44-21 for the NFC championship, and the New England Patriots triumphed over the Pittsburgh Steelers 36-17.

Out of the two competitive games, one was an absolute classic Divisional round game where the Packers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 34-31 thanks to late game heroics by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, while the other competitive game featured a team in the Steelers winning 18-16 against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional round, despite scoring no touchdowns and kicking six field goals.

Despite the more than disappointing games in these playoffs so far, there is still optimism that Super Bowl LI will produce a classic, back and forth game that will leave all neutrals satisfied. It certainly looks likely as the matchup in Super Bowl LI features two juggernaut offenses in the Patriots and the Falcons that are both sure to put up a lot of points on the scoreboard. With that being said, below are a few storylines to watch for in Super Bowl LI.  

• Brady/Belichick Legacy

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Photo by Mark Sardella. Retrieved from Flickr.

The New England Patriots have been the team of the twenty-first century, establishing a dynasty that has extended for almost two decades. What is even more impressive is that they have done this in the modern NFL, during the salary-cap era which was specifically designed to eliminate the possibility of dynasties such as the Patriots from even existing. The two common figures in the Patriots four Super Bowl titles in 2002, 2004, 2005, and 2015 has been head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. They are at the forefront of a winning culture and soon to be seven Super Bowl appearances. Both are seen as one of, if not already the greatest quarterback and coach in NFL history. Both are tied for the most Super Bowl wins by a coach and quarterback in NFL history, Belichick with Chuck Noll, and Brady with Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw. They already have the record for the most appearances, but a fifth Super Bowl title would put both at the mountain top in terms of wins, and virtually end all debate of who the greatest coach and quarterback is.            

• Matt Ryan Tier 1 QB?

Ever since Matt Ryan, nicknamed “Matty Ice,” entered the league in 2008 with the third overall pick in the draft, he has been a solid franchise quarterback for the Falcons. Despite this, he has never taken the stride to “elite” status and has hindered near the top of tier 2 qbs. Furthermore, up until this season he had not lived up to his nickname and had seen a drop in production in his 5 playoff appearances. In fact up until this season, he had a record of only 1-4 in the postseason as starter and his yards per game, touchdown to interception ratio, and quarterback rating had significantly dipped in the playoffs.

However, this season Matt Ryan has proven all of his doubters wrong, putting together an MVP season. In fact he should be and is the favorite to win the award after having a historic season, passing for over 4,900 yards, and throwing 38 touchdowns with only seven interceptions, while also leading the league in passer rating with 117.1 and yards per attempt with 9.26 yards, an NFL record. Most impressively perhaps, he also threw at least one touchdown pass to a staggering 13 different players, also an NFL record. Ryan has done all this while leading the league’s number one offense, as well as earning his team a first round bye with the number 2 seed in the NFC, thanks to an 11-5 record in the regular season.

Matt Ryan during a game against the Dallas Cowboys. Photo by Seatacular. Retrieved from Flickr.

Despite his MVP season critics doubted Ryan entering the postseason, questioning if he could perform well in playoff games, something he had not proved he could do. Once again he proved his critics wrong. In the two playoff games he has played, Ran has passed for 730 yards, thrown seven tds with no interceptions while leading  the postseason in passer rating with a remarkable 132.6. To put that into perspective the two next closest to him are Aaron Rodgers of the packers and Dak Prescott of the Cowboys with a passer rating of 103.8, and 103.2 respectively.

Still however, whether fair or not, quarterback are judged on the championships they win more so than the stats they pile up. So if Matt Ryan wants to be known as an “elite” quarterback with the likes of Brees, Rodgers, and Brady he must prove it in the biggest game of the year. Furthermore, if he wants to go down as one of the best quarterbacks of his generation, he must get a ring in his career. For Ryan, there is no better way to change people’s perspectives of him than to outduel one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time in Brady, and beat the perineal team of the NFL in the New England Patriots.   

• Brady vs Commissioner Roger Goodell

On January 25th’s episode of ‘The Herd’, analyst Colin Cowherd asked the commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell about the possibility of handing the Super Bowl trophy to Brady and the Patriots. He specifically asked if “[Goodell] would be slightly uncomfortable” doing so, to which he replied by saying “not for a second” and even stated that “it would be an honor.”

Roger Goodell. Photo from WikiMedia.

While his words might say otherwise, it is obvious to anyone who has followed the “deflategate” scandal over the past two years, that commissioner does not want the Patriots to win. There would be some sort of awkwardness in handing out the Vince Lombardi trophy to a player that he suspended for four games this season and had court battles with. Furthermore another Super Bowl title would mean that Tom Brady and the Patriots would be the one to get the last laugh on this whole scandal.

Goodell’s “rivalry” with the Patriots is extended even more by the fact that most Patriots’ fans feel that “deflategate” was a hoax and that Goodell unjustly punished their team, as well as tried to tarnish the legacy of their franchise quarterback. This has lead to many fans angrily threatening the commissioner and calling for him to lose his job. Perhaps this is why Goodell has not been present during a single patriots game at Foxborough for over two years, since the 2015 AFC championship game.

All of this has set the perfect narrative heading into the big game on Sunday, with Patriots’ fans craving the moment of what they feel is vindication for their quarterback. And there is no doubt that if the Patriots find a way to beat the falcons, the trophy presentation will be the defining moment of the 2016-17 NFL season as well as one of the most iconic moments in the history of the NFL.      

• What defense will step up?

Super Bowl LI is almost guaranteed to be a shootout as is it features the number one scoring offense in the Falcons, as well as the number three scoring offense in the Patriots. Both offenses are extremely hard to neutralize, which makes for an exciting match-up but begs the question which defense will step up?

While the Patriots also have the number one defense in the league, giving up an average of 15.6 points per game, that stat is extremely misleading due to the patriots schedule. In the regular season, the patriots were extremely fortunate in facing offenses featuring pedestrian quarterbacks. The only above average qb the patriots have had to deal with was the Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson, to whom they game up a season high 31 points in their week 10 matchup. So do not expect the patriots to contain the Falcons, as they have not faced an offense close to what the Falcons have.

The Falcons defense is much worse however, 27th in the league in scoring defense, allowing an average of 25.4 points per game. Their defense has had the misfortune of playing against some of the top offenses in the league including twice the Packers and the New Orleans Saints both whom are the top four in points per game.

Quarterbacks the Patriots have played since week 5. Photo from Colin Cowherd’s “The Herd.”

Despite both defenses not being anything special as opposed to the Denver Broncos defense that featured in the Super Bowl last year, and the Seattle Seahawks defense that featured in the Super Bowl for two years prior to last year, both the Patriots and the Falcons defense features stars that are playmakers. For the Patriots, star linebacker Dont’a Hightower controls the middle of the field including the running game, as well as corner Malcolm Butler, and safety Devin McCourty who are both pro bowlers and excel in coverage. The Falcons defense features pass rusher Vic Beasley, who had a breakout season this year and lead the league in sacks with 15.5 of them. Beasley causes havoc and is a relentless pass rusher who also creates a lot of turnovers via the strip sack.

Although the Super Bowl will surely be an offensive shootout, the winner of the game might be decided by which defense gets key stops on third downs and forces turnovers, which both defenses are capable of doing.           

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Hundreds of citizens around Malden and the Greater Boston area gathered at the Jenkins Auditorium on Saturday January 21st to celebrate and support the Chinese Lunar New Year. Performers of various ages and walks of life displayed their musical, dance, and vocal talents as in reverence and appreciation for Chinese culture in this annual gathering organized by the Chinese Culture Connection, also referred to as the CCC. This was also the “most important event of the year” that Malden High School’s Asian Culture Club organized in collaboration with the CCC.

Chinese Culture Connection’s Multi arts performance troupe. Photo by Toby Pitan.

The CCC was founded by the Massachusetts Council in collaboration with the Lenny Zakim Fund and the Adelaide Breed Bayrd Foundation, three organizations focused on bridging together communities in Boston. The goal of the Chinese Culture Connection is to promote diversity in the city of Malden and surrounding areas while uniting Chinese and American communities. The organization hosts various programs for youth and adults and have a big focus on supporting the Chinese immigrant population in Malden. They offer programs such as school and community workshops, Saturday classes and summer camp, cultural dialogue series, and Youth Leadership and Mentoring programs. These programs extend to all racial backgrounds with the aim of educating citizens of Chinese culture. There next program will be their New Year Celebration at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston on February 4th from 10-4pm.

Another dance called ‘Elegance’ by CCC’s multi-arts performance troupe. Photo by Toby Pitan.

This year’s Malden Annual Lunar New Year Celebration was for the Year of the Rooster as it was displayed on the event’s program. The event was a four hour long gathering of citizens and performers of a wide range of ages and extending from Malden Senior Center to the Students of Little Dragon at the Beebe School in Malden. There were also performers from other organizations around Malden such as the Wah Lum Kung Fu and Tai Chi Academy, North East Rhythmic School of Gymnastics and Dance, Andover Chinese School Choirs, Malden High School Asian Army, and Malden High School Asian Culture Club, to name a few.

Many MHS students from the Asian Culture Club worked tirelessly to prepare for the annual event. Some arrived at the building from as early as 11am and stayed until as late as 6 pm in preparation and conclusion of the event. Many club members doubled as performers: student played guitar, some sang, and others danced such as the Malden High School Asian Army. The MHS is a dance team not in collaboration with the Asian Culture Club. They performed a number called “Blood Sweat and Tears” by BTS. They were seen in the auditorium from as early as noon rehearsing for the show.

The Malden High School Asian Culture Club had a large role to play in this event. The event is hosted by MHS Latin teacher Julie Snyder and is attended by a handful of culturally diverse students. This clubs hosts events such as Sushi Workshops, Noodle Workshops. Head of the club senior Emily Zhou explains how the club “is not limited to just Asians [and] welcomes a lot of other cultures.” Zhou joined the club as a freshman because she wanted to “learn more about [her] culture as well as other cultures.” Zhou says that she believes this year’s celebration “went smoothly…considering every year [the event] is crazy and chaotic.”

Check out more photos from the Lunar New Year celebration here.

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BY SABRINA MONTEIRO & JOSANDY JEUNE 

Senior Deyshawn Beaucicot in side control. Photo taken by Sabrina Monteiro.

Check out the rest of the photos from the match here. 

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BY SYDNEY STUMPF & REBECA PEREIRA 

Poetry Out Loud has been a collaborative effort between teachers and students each year. Poetry Out Loud is a unit of poetry included in the English curriculum where students perform poetry in class and advance to semi-finals and finals.

Poetry Out Loud Winner Paul Araiza recites his poem. Photo by Rebeca Pereira.

The 2017 Poetry Out Loud Unit has ended and one student has been chosen to represent Malden High School in the statewide Poetry Out Loud competition. In third place, sophomore Paige Pimentel, in second, Sophomore Sammy Lee, and the winner of the competition was senior Paul Araiza, who will represent Malden in the next round of Poetry Out Loud.

On January 5th, the school-wide finals were held in the auditorium during lunch block. First, each student performed a poem, followed by a round of teacher performances, finishing with a last round of student performances.

This has always been the routine, but this year’s POL finals were different. Dedicated to the late David Holland, the teacher competition began on a more serious note. But in the spirit of the good humor Holland was known for, the competition turned more lively. Head of the English Department Sean Walsh told the crowd “[Holland] was a lover of Poetry Out Loud. He was the winner of the 2015 competition. He had an ability to deal with serious issues and respond with good humor and I think, in that spirit, we see some teachers who are up here taking some risks with courage and I hope we have some good humor.”

Second place winner Sammy Lee recites his poem. Photo by Rebeca Pereira.

This year’s teacher competition saw a variety of outstanding performances. Performers included teachers Michelle Filer, Evan Mauser, Thomas Snarsky, Brian Wong, Zachary Kent, and Miranda Libkin, and student teacher Zachary Kent. Libkin, an English teacher, won the competition.

Miranda Libkin, winning the competition, “[felt] like a rockstar.” She notes competing as “fun and terrifying”. Libkin says she makes her students do Poetry Out Loud, and it was “really good to be able to put [herself] in their shoes.”

Third place winner Paige Pimental recites her poem. Photo by Rebeca Pereira.

The two judges for the final round of Poetry Out Loud were the Director of Humanities, Abbey Dick and assistant superintendent Carol Keenan. Dick, a former English teacher, had judged her own students, but judging “the best of the best” was a “total pleasure.” Keenan says judging the final round was the “highlight of [her] week.” She notes judging as being difficult, because of all the students who did so well.

Junior Jenny Huynh, who recited “Personal” by Tony Hoagland and “April Midnight” by Arthur Symons, chose both of her poems by “looking through the website and making sure [she] really liked the poem[s]”. Reciting one poem after the other for a large audience can be nerve racking, which is why, she says, it’s important to really enjoy the poems you choose.

Paul Araiza, the winner of the competition comments that as a senior, winning felt like “summer in a bowl”. He’ll be competing in the regional competition next.

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On Thursday, January 26, 2017 the Malden Public Library decided to host their annual 19th Trivia night at the restaurant Anthony’s. This is the second to last Trivia night that the Malden Library would be hosting. This year’s Trivia night is dedicated to Dr. George Holland and James Norton, both having recently passed away. The event included a mini band and 4 round, with 5 minute intermissions in between the rounds. Some teams participating were like, Mayor’s Mottley Crew, which of course included mayor Gary Christenson, MATV, and the winners of this year’s best decorated team, Chambers of Commerce, who dressed like characters from Harry Potter, and more.

Photos of previous Malden Library Trivia night winners by Ziping Wu, and decorated into posters by Carol Woodruff. Photo by Michelle Yin.

Check out the rest of the photos here. 

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One of the senior projects being taken on this year is a tutoring program being organized by senior, Allyson Kummins. She wanted to take this project on because she had the chance to be a tutor sophomore year for a similar project. She also mentioned that Paul Marques, computer science teacher at Malden High School and advisor to NHS, encouraged students to take on this project but nobody had decided to do it.

Kummins agreed to do it and wants to “try to get the job done so it would last after [she] graduate[s], and [become] a successful program.” She was excited to do it since she “had the first hand experience with [tutoring for an NHS project].”

The actual organization of the program is being done mainly online, with the only part that won’t be, being the actual tutoring. She is using setmore.com that allows her to create a separate page for each tutor, and lets each of them make thir own schedule. She is currently looking into finding teachers to become involved.

One of the challenges that she foresees with this project is that “students may not want to admit they may need tutoring, and may not want to sign up on their own.” That is one of the reasons she wants to do it online, because she feels that “If teachers go online with the student, and helps them make an appointment, they may be more likely to come because it’s now an obligation given by the teacher, much like any other assignment.”

Kummins noted that “there are always students that need to be tutored,” so her biggest step will be finding people who are free and want to tutor. She is hoping to find students “that can tutor in a wide variety of subjects from Algebra to Chemistry to French.” She is also collaborating with former MHS teacher Arlene Ceppetelli, organizer of another tutor group located in the Teen Center, to see if they can “help each other out or combine our ideas to create a larger program.”

She has hopes that it will be a success, but notes that there’s no way she can be sure until she is done. “[she] will be happy as [as long as] she [makes] progress.”

She is confident that even if it is on a small scale this semester, that “another NHS student in the future may want to build off of the ideas [she] had” or that “Mr. Marques can help continue it in the coming years on a larger scale.”

She says that so far there haven’t been any volunteers, but that “hopefully [she] can get some [people] to join.” With that, she also mentions that there aren’t any specific qualifications needed to become a tutor. That’s why she reached out to many of the teachers here. She “asked them to mention the program to their upper level, or upperclassmen classes, and let their students know if they would be a good fit to tutor in a certain subject.” She believes that teachers would know best what subject a student would be of help in.  

Also, the reason she hasn’t made a school wide announcement to students is because she doesn’t “want some who wouldn’t be helpful or that doesn’t know what they’re doing to come and say they want to tutor.” She believes that the purpose of tutoring is to help students who need it, and that doing that “wouldn’t help at all.” Another reason for not reaching out to everyone is that she “also want to make sure I have most of the details set in stone before I ask for any tutors.”

If you would like to get into contact with Kummins on being tutored or possibly being a tutor, then you can reach her at akummins17@maldenps.org.

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After 30 years of teaching Special Education in Malden, Dawn Frim is retiring from the Malden Public Schools system. She has been teaching in Malden High School’s Transition Program since 2005, which provides students with disabilities with practical academic skills, life skills and vocational skills through matching activities and lessons to the student’s interests, abilities and learning styles. She has also taught at Beebe, Forestdale and the Early Learning Center. Outside of Malden Public Schools, Frim taught vocational skills for three summers to special needs adults on an army base in Israel and has written two published books.

Dawn Frim with two of her students, Scott and Ben. Photo submitted by Erica Benitez.

Frim’s career began at Forestdale in 1987, where she was a paraprofessional for two years. She says that “[she] has taught at every school [she] attended as a student: Brown Middle School, Lincoln Elementary School and Malden High School.” On her time at MHS, Frim “loves working with 18-22 year olds. It has truly been [her] passion. [Her] years at MHS have been an adventure with countless memories.” She believes that the Transition Program has been successful because “it takes a team effort to make the program work.” Frim also acknowledges that her co-workers, particularly Roger Roy and Anne Ranieri, have contributed to making her time at MHS so wonderful.

On her retirement, Frim believes that it was time for her to start a new chapter in her life. However, she says that “[she] still has a lot of energy and would like to learn new skills.” Although she is saying goodbye to her career, Frim is “still very passionate enthusiastic and passionate about it.” After she retires, Frim plans on working a few days a week as a medical secretary in her son’s office, who is a chiropractic physician.

Leaving Malden High School has been very bittersweet for Frim. She says that “it has been difficult for [her] to say goodbye, since [she] has been teaching for more than half of [her] life.” Being a teacher has allowed Frim to be successful in being flexible, embracing challenges as learning opportunities and having a sense of humor.

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Although Indoor Track is usually focused on running, not everyone on the team is a runner. There are different aspects of Indoor Track that build up the team’s score such as shot put, and high jump. Senior Anna Julia Souza is a shot put thrower for Malden.

Her track and field journey began during her junior year. Upon joining the team, she felt good to find a sport to play to her own strengths. Along with this, she finds it interesting to see how the team works; how different track is. In other sports, the spotlight is usually on one person who “carries” the team, but track has a list of smaller events, and everyone’s contribution combines for a win. She concludes that track is special because of “all these different events for different body types, which you don’t see in [other] sports.”

Anna Julia Souza. Photo taken by Ryan Hames.

All the little events that are held are important for the athletes to come together to support each other and treat each other kindly. Every person in every event matters. “It’s a lot of take and give- if you’re nice, you get treated nicely back,” she explains, though of course there’s always going to be that same high school drama. Though, she still believes that “the coaches are there to help you, the teammates are there to help you improve, and it’s a safe place to work as a team outside of school.”

After coming a long way, this year she qualified for the States competition. She’s been training to build up muscle for a good throw, and in the state, a good throw is 30 meters out in front. Though the idea of going to states is a bit nerve-wracking to Souza considering that in the past she’s had a hard time easing up before a meet.

“Last year, when [she] first did it, [she] would always get stressed out before a meet,” she explained. This year, to prepare for meets, Souza tries not to think about it, and stays loose and relaxed and “just [tries] to keep a clear mind,” she stated.

To add onto her plate, Souza explained that just being in the competition is going to be a challenge. She stated that “before [her] last few meets [she’d] go to [her] coach’s room a lot and he’d say ‘No you’re gonna hit a 30, you’re gonna hit a 30,’” and she’s had her doubts thinking, “[she] can barely hit a 28.” She just barely met the requirement, adding to the strain and is “scared to go in and not be as good as the other people.” Though, Souza remains hopeful and is still proud of the improvement she has made.  

Souza hopes that she’d be able to continue her track and field experience outside of high school. Though right now, she plans on focusing on her strength and posture to get the best throw she can at her last indoor track meet.

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Malden High school offers a variety of opportunity for students to get involved and one of them being the YMCA leadership club. “It helps building the skills you need to be a leader,” says senior Danny Chen, the president of the YMCA club. He also explains further about how the clubs helps him from speaking in front of people to managing a crowd. The members also gain volunteer hours which is great for forming their resume, besides being able to connect with more people like them and making new friends. “There is something beautiful about a story of people who barely know each other, come together in one place and…benefit the community,” says junior Brian Tong, a member of the club.

The YMCA Leadership members got together for a picture at a family event. Picture submitted by the club.

This year, the club faces many challenges, one being that, at the start of the year there were “many new officers” with limited experience in “handling new members and the membership fees,” explained Tong. Another problem is that the majority of officers were in the process of applying to  college and couldn’t contribute to the club as much as they did before because, “most of the officers are seniors,” says senior Yining Mao. In addition to members’ schedules being full, the club faces yet another obstacle as “there are a lot of people joined this year, up to a hundred members,” says Chen. Despite the struggles, the leaders try their best to give the members as much attention and opportunities as possible.

“The club is pretty well and more organized than last couple years,” Chen stated. Chen explained that this year, the club came up with an idea that will help building a club of productive members. Everyone who wishes to be a part of a club will be required to be in an interview in which the leaders will decide whether to keep someone based on their answers. Besides interviewing people to filter out the people who joined, this year, the club improves as its members learn to “balance between [their] schedules and force [themselves] to meet deadlines including going to events and officer meetings,” Mao explains. The club also starts to make spreadsheets for volunteer hours and google docs for outlines for every meeting, making it easier for the members to keep track with what is going on within the club.

 The club’s projects mainly revolves around the Malden community. “The more events, the more people we help, the more smiles we bring to the community and within the club,” explained Tong. Many events include ones like “the family nights at the YMCA, which is one of the big events,” says Mao. The club does not only help the members becoming future leaders but also the Malden locals as well. Tong expresses that,“[he is]  honored to be a part of this club and being able to lead and help others to become leaders in the community themselves.”         

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Junior Jason Montezuma has been wrestling for three years. Montezuma decided to give wrestling a try because he wanted to do a winter sport and felt “it [suited him more] than swimming and basketball.”

Last year, the wrestling team had more people on the team. However this year, the season has been more challenging as there is a much smaller variety in people to compete against and practice with than in years’ past. Montezuma’s goal for the team is to “make sure that the people that started the year off, [remain motivated and succeed].” Although the team is smaller, Montezuma continues to work hard to improve his skills as a wrestler.

Junior Jason Montezuma. Photo taken by Sabrina Monteiro.

Montezuma believes the year hasn’t been the best for the team this year, but thinks on the positive side, feeling that this year is a period of rebuilding for the team. As an entire team, “[they] haven’t won, but as individuals, there has been many wins,” he stated. The most memorable meet for Montezuma was when the team went against a team “where there were only four wrestlers on [their] side and three of [them] won.”

In wrestling, Montezuma thinks his strengths will be to help lead his team members in making sure their skills/techniques are set and are being worked with. He will be able to do this, “since [he] has not been able to compete because of his injury during the second week of the season.”

When Montezuma goes to college, he says “if the opportunity is there, [he will] probably do wrestling, but [for now he has not made a decision],” and he will continue to enjoy his experience in high school.  

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BY JESAIAS BENITEZ & EMRAUDE BONNET

As the season starts to come to an end, Junior Xue Zhou is enjoying her second year on the varsity team.

Zhou has been playing basketball ever since sixth grade and now she is playing as a point guard and shooting guard on the team. When she arrived at Malden High School, she was eager to sign up for the winter sport. Practicing hard on and off the court, she was able to get onto the varsity team her sophomore year, allowing her hard work to pay off.

A wonder on the court, Zhou captures the audience’s attention when she has the ball in her hands. This season, the team’s goal along with hers is to win the GBL and win the tournament, as it will be her last time competing for GBL. Other goals and expectations set for the season are to win more games than their previous season.

Now, more than half way through the season, the girls basketball team has already achieved these goals set in place. Like every other athlete, Zhou wants to improve on her basketball skills along with her communication skills.

One of the team’s she would enjoy to play against would be Lynn Classical because “they are a great team and [she] could learn many things from playing against them.” The girls have their minds set to accomplish every single day. Whether they are or aren’t at practice, “each of [them] are improving each day. [They] practice hard every day and it pays off in games.”

Zhou also states that “as a team [they] want to have more communication and treat each [other like] family member[s] of the program. [They] want to have positive attitudes toward all things.” As for the basketball program, it’s improving each and every day, making it “great to see more and more people getting involved in [the] program.”

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Kaytlin Kwong, a junior at Malden High School, is a first-year member of the gymnastics team. Although she was not on the MHS team prior to this year, Kwong is an experienced veteran in the sports, having been done gymnastics for nine years.

Junior Kaitlyn Kwong. Photo taken by Sabrina Monteiro.

Kwong took a year off gymnastics to focus off her studies and her classes. Kwong was aware that “[MHS] had a team, but [she] didn’t have time before, so [she] joined this year.” Kwong enjoys how the sport is mostly an individual and team sport at the same time. She also likes how they have to use teamwork to “get the job done” and get all of their scores.

Kwong has found the experience really different just because she has never been on a high school team before. Kwong stated that she has “found the team very sweet, everyone seems to have really good chemistry.” Kwong does all of the events during the meets which are vault, bars, beam, and floor. She thinks that her strengths as a gymnast is that she is able to cheer on her team members and co-operation. What Kwong thinks she needs to improve on is not being so hard on herself and allowing herself to make mistakes.

All in all, Kwong has really enjoyed her gymnastic season, and really enjoys how well the team is able to work together.

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Kevin Ochoa, sophomore at Malden High School, is in his second year swimming for the school after starting as a freshman. Ochoa remembers swimming as a child from the early age of 5 years old. He credits his start in swim to his mother who was eager to put Ochoa in swimming lessons.

From there he began taking swimming lessons and joined a team. Little did he know that not only would he be able to swim, but would also be able to be a strong component to the Malden High School swim team.

Directly from the start, Ochoa swam in lane 1 as a freshman. From there on out it was full speed for Kevin Ochoa’s swim career. He currently swims in lane 1 and his main events are the 200 freestyle and 100 fly, but due to his endurance he prefers the 200 freestyle as he likes long distance events.

Sophomore Kevin Ochoa. Photo taken by Leah Tramondozzi.

To Ochoa joining swim has always been “a big dream” for him and felt that coming to the high school was “a great opportunity to represent his school as well as getting involved in sports.”

Ochoa acclaims his sense of leadership and maturity to the team. He believes that the swim team is like a family with no judgement, each individual displaying a great work ethic.

His favorite memory was of his first GBL title and how “after the big win [they] went to the Dockside as a team and enjoyed the title with all [his] team members” and claims that as the season went by, “the swim members became a part of [him],” says Ochoa.

He takes great pride in knowing that the team really cares about each other as individuals rather than solely based on their skills and that “the team has a bond that sets [them] apart from everyone else. [Their] team is a family and it inspires [them] to overcome all obstacles,” states Ochoa.

A close friend of Ochoa, Agatha Silva, also a sophomore swimmer, has known Ochoa for almost three years and claims that “[she] honestly [does] not know if [she] would be able to do swim without him” and that “ he is an amazing flyer and watching him leaves [her] in awe because [she] knows how much work he puts into the sport he loves.” Not only is he a great swimmer but also “a person that is always able to make the team laugh and he always checks up on the team if [they] look upset.” Silva states that, “the swim atmosphere would be completely different if [they] didn’t have him on the team.”

Joanne Ho, also a sophomore swimmer, says that “Ochoa is a phenomenal swimmer and is one of the best on the team.” To Ho, Ochoa is dedicated “since he works hard at not one, but two practices a day since he swims for the YMCA Crocs.” She is in accord with Silva stating that “he is so supportive of everyone and is a huge part of why the team has gone undefeated this season.”

Another close friend Olivia Forestier, who is also another sophomore swimmer, says that “whether it be for swim or advice on life, [she] knows that he will always be there for [her].” Forestier not only states that he is an amazing swimmer but also that “he is a crucial part of [the] team and one of the many reasons [she] loves this sport.” To Forestier, “ his hard work and dedication has truly paid off and it does not go unnoticed.”

Apart from the great bond he shares with teammates, this season everyone has played a part in the contribution to being GBL champs with more people swimming more events. The swim team has been undefeated but Ochoa believes that “next year will be tough as [they] are going into a new league but [they] are staying positive.”

Outside of school Ochoa participates in the Ping Pong club, the Key club, The Red Cross, Y leaders, band and crew.  He also swims for the YMCA club team.

He hopes that his great ambition for swim since the age of five will come true being the ability  to swim in college and become recruited.

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Growing up, junior Tiffany Tortora enjoyed playing basketball. Attending Malden Youth basketball weekly. After Tortora finished Malden Youth, she was able to move forward and start her high school basketball career.

Playing since her freshman year as center position, she has “learn[ed] experiences, success as well as failures, and most of all unforgettable memories.” These unforgettable memories “[have] transformed [the program] into a community where [they] all have a sense of togetherness and everyone supports each other. From freshman,to JV, to varsity, [they] all support each other and push each other to be great.”

As the season begins to come to an end, Tortora’s goal is to “play more aggressive and communicate.” At the beginning of the year, the girls basketball team received their first win of the season against Everett. She believes that “playing Everett is always a great match up” because they are able to not only communicate, but use their skills in order to win. Working together they are able to defeat other cities and rivalries throughout the season.

With Scott Marino’s welcoming into the season a couple months back, several teammates had and still have “high hopes” for the season because Marino brings so much to the table like new skills and strategies they are able to use on the court and he pushed them each and every practice. Compared to last year Tortora summed up this “season as amazing and successful… always remaining positive” Next year, as a senior, Totora hopes to play another season as well as continue her high school career in playing basketball or volleyball in college.

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BY CHRISTINA APPIGNANI & SYDNEY STUMPF 

In January, Malden welcomed its newest sweet shop. Honey Honey Dessert Cafe, located at 480 Main Street. It is owned by Stacey Zhang and Karen Lei, who have dreamed of opening a dessert shop for years. The shop serves a variety of beverages, breakfast foods, sandwiches and desserts, but offers healthier options such as salads and tea.

Honey Honey Dessert Cafe Menu. Photo by Christina Appignani

Christina’s POV:

The cafe has a really easygoing, cute atmosphere. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the music. The cafe doesn’t play typical pop music that you’d expect, it played covers of softer, quieter songs from both popular and indie artists. For example, I heard covers of “Let Her Go” by Passenger, “Clean” by Taylor Swift and “Riptide” by Vance Joy. The music really made it feel like a cafe to do homework, read and talk with friends.

The service was exceptional. When I walked in, we were greeted very politely and were told to take our time ordering. The cashier also asked us if we were looking were jobs because they have been looking to hiring teens in the Malden area

When I went, I ordered a chocolate chip muffin. The muffin was really well baked and was a pretty good size as well. The Cafe offers multiple kinds of muffins, including blueberry, raisin bran and lemon crumb. A lot of the bakery goods were on display under the counter, which easily persuaded me to try the muffin.

Popcorn Chicken from Honey Honey Dessert Cafe. Photo taken by Sydney Stumpf.

Along with that, I also shared an order of popcorn chicken with Sydney. It was the best popcorn chicken I’ve ever tasted. Unlike most types of popcorn chicken where it’s frozen first and then defrosted, this popcorn chicken was actually cooked. The smell of it was alluring and the taste was mouthwatering.

Because of my good experience here, I’ll definitely be coming back again soon. I’ll probably order the popcorn chicken again, but I’d also like to try one of their breakfast sandwiches and hot tea. I’d definitely recommend this cafe to a friend, and I’ll be bringing some friends there soon. Honey Honey is a great place to eat, hang out with friends or do homework in a quiet, friendly environment.  

Sydney’s POV:

When I went to the cafe with Christina, I was immediately excited. The cafe was perfectly decorated with modern tables and chairs. The woman at the counter was very nice, and made suggestions. I ordered a vanilla iced latte, like I do at Dunkin Donuts every morning. I also ordered the popcorn chicken. The latte was $4.25 and the chicken, $4.95. It was all reasonably priced, and within my tiny budget.

An iced cafe latte from Honey Honey Dessert Cafe. Photo by Sydney Stumpf.

My latte was made quickly, which was wonderful, because I really needed some coffee. It was a little small, like the lattes you would order at a place like the Thinking Cup in Boston, or any other independent coffee shop. It was really good. I wish I didn’t drink it so fast, but like I said, I was about to fall asleep in my chair.

While I waited for my chicken, I wasn’t bored or uncomfortable, thanks to both Christina and the charming atmosphere of the cafe. The chicken came out in a to-go box, with a stick. I don’t know if I was supposed to use the single stick to pick up the chicken, but that’s what I did. It was a good portion of chicken and it tasted really good. We ate the whole thing very quickly and I debated getting another order to take home. I don’t know how to describe popcorn chicken, it was just really, really, good.

I will definitely be going back there.

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On Tuesday January 31st, the Malden Reads Committee did a presentation at the Senior Center to discuss their upcoming plans for their seventh season. One plan that was discuss was the this year’s book selection titled A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

Anne D’Urso-Rose an associate director at MATV and a part of the Malden Reads team said that they’re planning on doing the same events from last year such as a community stargazing on Waitt’s Mountain and a Malden Reads Family Night at Boda Borg. Since the major theme of this this year’s book is getting to know your neighbors, she said they are “looking forward to bringing people together, [who may not necessarily know each other], for those events.”

This year, the team is partnering up with Malden Arts for the “Free Little Libraries” project, where  they will create hand-crafted little libraries that people can “adopt”and place them near their house on a public street. D’Urso-Rose mentioned that “the idea is for the public to to take a book & leave a book.” Another plan is creating a local map of all the little free libraries that will be built around the city.

This year’s book choice, A Man Called Ove is a novel written by Fredrik Backman, which centers on a man who recently lost his wife and falls into a deep state of depression and ends up having suicidal thoughts. He is found to be funny and tends to say things that one should not say out loud. Throughout the novel, the whole neighborhood and community try to pull him out of his sadness and become a part of his life through hilarious incidents. One reason the committee chose this book is to be able to tag along with the theme of getting to know people in your neighborhood and the community.

Every year, D’Urso-Rose said that the team “hope[s] to get more people reading book[s] more than ever before, talking about it with their friends, neighbors and fellow community members, and participating in at least one of the events offered.”

If you want to learn more about the Little Free Libraries project, you can visit the site littlefreelibrary.org or if you want to help out with Malden Reads, contact them at maldenreads@gmail.com.   

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