Snorkeling in Shark’s Cove, in Oahu, was the most breathtaking experience that I have ever had. The water there was a gorgeous shade of aquamarine. Underneath the water were some interesting lava rocks; they varied in size, were different shades of black and gray, and had random distributions of holes on them. It seemed as if there were schools of fish everywhere. I saw hundreds of medium-sized yellow- and black-striped fish and hundreds of shiny, silver fish that reflected light as they swam. When these fish dispersed, purple-hued coral that looked like a brain was revealed to me. On top of the coral was an orange starfish with algae covering it. Next to them was what appeared to be a sizable rainbow parrotfish, and it was eating the coral. There were pearlescent pinkish-white shells scattered throughout the environment. Out of all of the places that I have snorkeled, Shark’s Cove was the most beautiful.

— Claire H.

The view from the top of Puppy Dome in the Tuolumne Meadows area of Yosemite National Park, California, mesmerizes hikers and climbers. Standing at the summit of the granite dome, you have a lot for your eyes to take in. You can see Lembert Dome in the near distance, a dull, light peach natural landmark. The wide-open space around you makes you seem tiny, and the sky seems vast. A sea of evergreen trees in the meadow below resembles green blades of grass and fills the air with the smell of sap. Peaking through the grass-like trees is a small, meandering river. As your attention is drawn back to your immediate surroundings, the smoothly polished rock underfoot along with the jumbled words of the climbers below and the sound of the wind, birds, and squirrels becomes noticeable. However, your awareness quickly returns to the enchanting landscape in fear that you will miss out on everything it offers.

—Grace L.

Art is a sacred activity for me. It is one of a few unscheduled activities in my over-scheduled life. I have created a special place in my bedroom that I like to retreat to after school to paint or draw. When I am in that space, I enjoy painting with watercolors and drawing or sketching anime, manga, and chibi, Japanese forms of cartooning. The medium that I choose each day depends on my current mood. Being creative helps me feel relaxed and calm. As I draw, I know that I can express myself and my emotions on a piece of paper. If I feel angry or happy, art will help me convey my message. Without art, I would not feel happy or emotionally free.

—Teagan N.

When I moved from China to Singapore when I was five years old, I had to share a hotel room with my mom and dad for several months. Thus, when we moved into our condo in Esta, I was relieved to finally have my own bedroom. I was excited to see my room for the first time and finally got to do so on our moving day. My room was empty, so I was happy that my mom and grandma were there to help me set it up. Ever since I could remember, I had wanted a bunk bed, so I finally convinced my parents to get me one. Once the bunk bed arrived, my mom, grandma, and I decorated the area underneath the bed as well as the rest of my room. My room was primarily pink but full of other colors in the rainbow, too. In my room, there was a huge closet that I liked to hide and play in. I also liked to use my bunk bed as a jungle gym and climb and play on it. These activities were especially fun to do when I had friends over for playdates and sleepovers, which I frequently did while I lived at Esta. Unfortunately, after living there for only two years, construction began at an adjacent building, so my family and I moved to a new condo because of the noise associated with the construction. As we were packing up all of our things in big cardboard boxes, I felt very sad and lonely because I had to leave my room and all my friends at Esta behind. Although my room at our new condo held most of my belongings from Esta, the memories from Esta remained in my old room.

—Alisa W.

The bright colors of adult red-eyed tree frogs and how these colors benefit them are fascinating. These adult frogs are mostly green and have blue- and yellow-striped sides, partially blue thighs, orange or red feet, and big red eyes. Not surprisingly, they use their green coloring as camouflage amongst the green tree leaves, which they sleep on during the day. What is surprising, though, is that their vibrant colors serve as a defense mechanism. When a predator awakens a red-eyed tree frog, the frog’s eyes suddenly open, revealing a pop of red color and startling its enemy, giving the frog a chance to escape. As it escapes, it exposes its “hidden colors”—colors that were not visible while it was sleeping. This revelation surprises and confuses the predator and increases the chance that the frog will get away. Red-eyed tree frogs’ colors make them interesting to observe in the wild.

—Grace L.

Before my trip to India in 2017, I knew that cows are sacred there; however, I did not realize just how sacred they are until … I met the white cow with gold jewelry. I was upstairs in my grandparents’ house when my grandmother came and got me. She was carrying a banana and ordered me to go downstairs with her to see a cow that was on the dirt road in front of her house. I was excited because I had never seen a cow up close. When I ran out the front door, I immediately saw the cow … and it was wearing jewelry! I was surprised by the jewelry because I had never seen a cow wearing jewelry before. It was wearing giant gold hoop earrings and several gold chain necklaces. The man leading the cow was not wearing any jewelry; he looked poor, and the cow looked rich. My grandfather lifted me so that I could feed the cow the banana. This whole experience helped me understand why my grandparents spend so much money on cow statues and think cows are gods.

—Akiro U.

Blue whales are the largest animals to have ever lived on Earth—they are even bigger than dinosaurs were! They can be up to 100 feet long, approximately the length of three school buses. Their overall body weight can tip the scales at over 200 tons. The tongues of these monstrous creatures can weigh as much as an elephant, the largest living land animal, and their hearts can weigh as much as a car. Despite their gigantic overall size, they eat one of the smallest animals to have ever lived on Earth—krill. Since blue whales are hidden beneath the surface of the ocean the majority of the time, it is easy for their actual size to be overlooked.

— Kye E.

Visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland Park and riding on the Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run made me feel like I was in a Star Wars movie. When I entered the spaceport, the inside waiting area leading up to the Millennium Falcon, I saw realistic-looking lightsabers and droid parts. Then I saw Hondo Ohnaka, the operator of the spaceport and our guide for the ride. He told us the purpose of our mission: to deliver Coaxium, a valuable hyperfuel. I could not stand the suspense; I was anxious to find out what my role on the mission would be and what the ride would be like. The automatic doors to the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon opened, and I immediately sat down in the left gunner seat. After everyone was seated, through the cockpit screen, I could see us take off. At that point, I was very excited but also worried about whether or not I could fulfill my part on the mission. As we flew into the enemy base, I had to shoot my gun at the enemies. I delivered the final blow to them by firing several missiles. We then returned to the spaceport and made a crash landing inside of it. Our final score for the mission was awful, but the overall experience was exhilarating. I cannot wait to ride on the Millennium Falcon again and repeat the mission to try to get a higher score.

—One P.

Watching the Falcon 9 rocket launch in Orlando, Florida, in the spring of 2018, with my mom and sister, was an unforgettable experience. I was very excited about our trip to Florida because I had never seen a real rocket launch before! We were supposed to watch the launch from the Kennedy Space Center. However, it was rescheduled to the day we had planned to be at Universal Studios, so we watched it from there. Despite the distance between us and the rocket, it was still an amazing sight. Using my mom’s iPhone, we were able to sync our countdown with the live countdown at the space center. Ten, nine, eight, seven … I had a feeling of great anticipation as the countdown neared “one.” It felt like vibrations were coming from the phone. As the rocket climbed skyward, the only way to locate it was with its trail of vapor and smoke, which dissipated in the wind. The rocket soon became a little red dot, indistinguishable from the sky. Two minutes later, it passed through the clouds and disappeared, but the memory of the launch has remained, and always will remain, with me.

— Grace L.