It is the time of year when we are thinking of being thankful. One thing I am thankful for this year is my family. My family is always there for me when I need them. They help me with lots of different tasks and provide me with the resources I need to be successful. My dad always takes me to play tennis so I can improve my game. I love spending time with him this way. Even though I get frustrated sometimes, I appreciate his help. My mom always helps me with my homework and helps me prepare for school and tennis. I appreciate their help and am so thankful to have them in my life. Even though my siblings sometimes annoy me and drive me crazy, I am still very thankful for them. We like to go outside in our backyard and play pickleball or make up different games. I like to read, shop, play tennis and draw with my little sister Mia. With my little brother AJ, I sometimes read with him or play games like hitting a balloon around. My grandparents all live close by and I enjoy seeing them. They always cook me yummy meals like noodle and rice dishes. They take me to fun places and I appreciate the love and joy they give me. I love spending time with my cousins, Audrey and Cora. We love to make up fun games to play together. My Aunt Linda and Uncle Marcus live in Texas and I love spending time with them every time they come to visit. I love playing board games with them and decorating Christmas cookies. Every year they take us somewhere for our Christmas gift and I always have such a good time. Some places they’ve taken us include ice skating, mini golfing, watching shows and so much more. I can’t wait for this Christmas! I am also thankful for my friends. I’ve met so many new friends throughout middle school so far and it’s been so fun getting to know all of them. They are all so fun, kind, intelligent, caring, and so much more. I love sitting with Sofia, Sydney, and Margaret at lunch. It’s been so nice getting to know all of them and their fun personalities. They are always there for me when I need them. They constantly help me better understand my homework and are always there to support me. They always bring me so much joy and laughter. I’ve also made many friends through tennis that I am very thankful to have met. Being able to play with friends just makes the game that much more enjoyable. I am so thankful for all of the friends I’ve made. Another thing I’m thankful for is my education and all of my teachers. I am thankful to be able to read and write. These skills will help me become a better student and eventually a worker. I am very thankful for all of my teachers this year and all the years in the past, they have been amazing. They have helped me so improve my knowledge in so many different areas and I appreciate all they do for me and so many other students. Without their help, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I’ve learned so much from all of them that I will take with me for the rest of my life. There are so many things I am thankful for! What are you thankful for this year?

If a genie had given you three wishes, what would you wish for? One thing I would wish for is to have my own private jet so I could travel to anywhere in the world whenever I want. I want to be able to travel the world with my family so I would want the jet to be pretty big. Some of the places I would want to travel to is Italy, Australia, Greece and many countries in Asia. The countries in Asia I would love to travel to is Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam and more. I would also like to be able to travel to Maui, Hawaii every year with my family. Currently, I travel to Maui Hawaii every other year with my family and always have such a good time! Some of the things I like to do in Maui is snorkeling, surfing, eating shaved ice and so much more! My second wish would be to have a big house with a tennis court and pool. This way I could play tennis and swim whenever I want. I won’t have to wait for a court when they’re full. I could also invite some of my friends over to play tennis with me and have pool parties in the summer! My big house would be two stories with a big living room. The house would have eight bedrooms. The bedrooms would be for me, my little sister, my little brother, my mom and dad, and all of my grandparents. We would all live together in one big house and spend lots of time together. My third with would be to have a golden-doodle dog. Golden-doodles are so cute and it would be a dream to have one of my own! One time me and my family babysat my dad’s friends golden-doodle dog named Suki. Suki was very hyper but also very cute and entertaining! Even though dogs are lots of work, I would have my sibling to help me take care of the dog.

In October, I read the book New From Here by Kelly Yang. This is a story about a family with three kids named Bowen, Knox, and Lea. Their home in Hong Kong gets hit by a virus, who no one knew would eventually turn into a worldwide global pandemic. When the virus hits Hong Kong, his mother decides to make a last-minute move to California where she thinks they will be safe. But there is only one problem, their dad can’t come with them, since he has to stay behind to work. Knox Wei-Evans a ten-year-old boy with ADHD, manages his way through his challenges from dealing with siblings to online school. The family struggles to connect while separated thousands of miles apart. In California, the kids are starting at new schools and struggling to be the new kids while facing hate at the same time. They learn that during these tough times, love and kindness will always be the solution to their problems. Love and kindness are what the world needs, especially during this devastating time.

I enjoyed this book, as the mood was very clear and the emotions were well-written. The situation was also very real as the COVID-19 pandemic did happen these past years. Kelly Yang did a phenomenal job at really describing what the characters were feeling during different situations in the book. These characters went through many different emotions while being separated from their dad and the emotions were well described. I also really liked how she ended each chapter with a thought that kept the reader thinking about what was going to happen next. This made me never want to stop reading! Throughout the story, the characters showed change not only in personality wise but also in the way they approached different situations.

My favorite character is Knox. Knox is my favorite character because he always tried his best to help even though things didn’t always turn out how he thought they would. Sometimes Knox has ideas that work in his head but don’t turn out too well. I like that he always tries to help his family to the best of his abilities. One of his character traits is loyal. A quote that proves this character trait is on page 272, “‘Hey! That’s my brother!’ I interrupt. ‘Stop it!'” This character trait proves he is loyal because it shows that he will always stand up for Bowen and support him. Knox always stands by Bowen’s side during good and bad situations. Even when Bowen is feeling down, Knox tries to echo him and support him even in during times when Bowen doesn’t want it. This is why Knox is my favorite character.

My favorite quote from the book is, “Hand in hand, we walk up the hill in our face masks with our parents. Things might be completely unpredictable. One day, we might be in the middle of a pandemic. The next day, we might be swimming in toilet paper. But somehow, we’ll pull through it all as a family.” This is my favorite quote because it’s the ending of the story and when the family reunites after a long time being apart. This is when they were eating breakfast and they were sad because their dad already left for his flight back to Hong Kong. Then, their dad came back because he changed his mind and decided to stay in California. This quote shows that sometimes, you just need to keep persevering and keep going even when it’s rough because good things will happen over time. This ending made me happy because they were happy to reunite with their dad.