Ethan Reed

 Growing up playing sports I have never really had a lot of free time considering there is always some sort of workout/practice to get to. However, when this pandemic hit, it forced me to get creative on how I could go about my days. In the beginning, I found myself getting very bored and it was driving me crazy. One hobby I have grown to love is reading. From real estate books to sportsbooks to biographies I have truly loved them all. It has taken me away from spending too much time on social media and really helped me relax and grow my knowledge on different topics. Currently, I am reading a book called The Mindful Athlete that I thoroughly enjoy and am trying to apply the lessons taught in it to my life. Once the quarantine began to lift a little bit I was able to go to the beach again and begin golfing with friends. Golfing felt very different at first because they were only allowing one person to a cart, tee times were much cheaper, masks were required when playing, and the fl...

 Why Being Physically active is good for your mental health My parents always knew they wanted to have four children, but the way it happened did not go the way they envisioned it. My mom's sister was a single mom who passed away too soon at the age of 32. When she passed her daughter Ashley was 6 years old and was about to become a foster child. My parents made a very easy, but life-changing decision to adopt her. Ashley is now my oldest sibling and has been an amazing role model throughout my entire life. Though she is not technically our actual sister, it has never felt otherwise and my siblings and I have and always will refer to her as our sister. Unfortunately, depression and anxiety have impacted her life in a significant way. Though, physical exercise has been something she swears by to get her out of her depressive episodes.  The stigma surrounding mental health Traditionally being sad or having a bad day has always been rebutted with "tough it out" or "stop...

Growing up Pluto was a significant part of what I learned regarding the planets and solar system. It was always my favorite planet because It was so small and had the coolest name. When author Mike Brown states he received hate mail I instantly made a connection. I was not one of the young students who wrote to him but I vividly remember questioning why pluto was no longer one of the major planets. Mike Brown also speaks about how he had a fond interest in planets and outer space from a young age. I can also relate to this, however, growing up in Laguna Beach the stars at night aren't necessarily too intriguing. However, this past summer I took a trip to Zion National Park and I was taken aback by how beautiful a sky can look. The stars lit up the entire sky, the constellations you could make out were incredible, and the countless shooting stars were something I will never forget. The driving factor for why I chose this book was to take a deeper look into what really goes on in our...