@theHelm - February 2022

Hillfield Strathallan College—Middle School Student Newspaper

Hello HSC students!

CONTENTS

There is an organization out there called

@theHelm—Issue 5: February 2022 ON THE COVER: “Sunset” digital art by Holly YatesKrull (702); Poem by Abdullah Al-Sheikhly (804)

4 The Lunar New Year Chinese New Year and… dumplings! By Jimmy and James Li

5 We should talk about Bruno Encanto review by Ahana Kulkarni

6 What’s the word on Wordle?

The craze that has everyone guessing, by Sophia Liu

SPECIAL FEATURES 05 Essay: Canadians that make a difference 24 Winter activities (+ French Corner)

Bird Friendly City Hamilton Burlington. They are all about making the cities of Hamilton and Burlington safer spaces for birds. To raise awareness of this issue, they have released a poll for citizens to vote for their favorite city bird.

If you live or go to school in Hamilton or Burlington (that means all of you), I encourage you to fill out this form and have a say in this decision.

The link to the poll is here:

https://birdfriendlyhamiltonburlington.wordpress .com/ Thank you!

Liam Thorne

REGULAR FEATURES 08 Video Games 09 Book Reviews 11 Dad Jokes 12-13 Pet Corner (+ budgie tips)

MONTHLY CHALLENGES 06 Mr. Hoad’s Word Puzzle 10 Mr. Cormican’s Math Corner 26 Kids Write For Kids contest link 31 CBC Front Page Writing Contest

Calling All Writers!

This Month’s Prompt: Sentence Starter Write a short story or poem that begins with this sentence prompt: “The whispers of the night bore many secrets. Secrets I’m about to uncover…”

RECIPES

Feeling shy? You can make sure to remain anonymous by leaving the “Name” slot blank, or using a pen (fake) name.

17 Banana Fritters 18 Cranberry Orange Scones 19 Mango Mix Blast Smoothie

Requirements for all pieces of writing are:  relevant to the topic  not too long  original work

ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY 07 Political Cartoons 20 Art Gallery (+ artists of the month) 31 Elora Winter Walks (photos) 32 Sunsets (photos)

Submissions will be featured in next month’s paper!

CREATIVE WRITING

Each month, the topic changes.

14 January prompt Winter Poems 25 The Lost Foghorn Pt 2 by Juliet Finley 28 Invisible by Aaron Parasu

Click here for the form

@theHelm ~ page 2

Track of the Month

by Ayo Tiamiyu, 703 (click mage to listen) @theHelm ~ page 3

Chinese New Year

by Jimmy Li (705)

a lot of red objects: red lanterns, red clothes, and other red decorations. The celebration also involves Chinese dumplings along with a family reunion.

and James Li (704)

There are two main types of dumplings consumed in China: the northern (Jiaozi, savoury The Chinese New Year is the dumpling) and southern (sweet) most important Chinese tradition. People in China celebrate it varieties. The people in the Jiaozi, savoury dumpling on the northern provinces (area of the first day 2022 Winter Olympics) eat the culture, similar to Christmas in of the northern dumplings, and the western culture. people in the south, such as Lunar Hong Kong, eat calenthe southern dar. variety.

Our The Lunar New family Year is often celebrate it considered the most important by inSweet dumpling volving day in Chinese

Groundhog Day

by Sophia Liu, 804

For many North Americans, Groundhog Day is one of the key factors as we begin making the transition from winter to spring.

Now, what is Groundhog Day? It’s a popular tradition celebrated on February 2nd in Canada and the USA. The belief is that if the groundhog sees its shadow, we are stuck with another 6 weeks of winter; the groundhog will then return back to its den. If it’s cloudier and the groundhog doesn’t see its shadow, we are granted an ear-

ly spring. This originates from a Pennsylvania Dutch superstition.

The whole weather lore portion is brought from German speaking areas in which the badger is their forecasting animal.

This year, most of Canada’s territories and provinces predicted a longer winter. However, Ontario’s groundhog predicted that we would be gifted with an early spring. Our groundhog is named Wiarton Willie and made his announcement in South Bruce Peninsula which is located in Northern Ontario. Studies in the past have not shown a clear and consistent connection between the groundhog’s prediction and the actual weather, so whether or not we get an early spring remains a mystery for now.

Watch Willie’s announcement here.

@theHelm ~ page 4

demic, Canadians would be in great danger. That is just one of many examples of what would happen if frontline workers stopped working mentally and physically. This is why it's during the pandemic.

by Anivit Sah, 701 important to have someone to guide us through these struggles. Doctors astly, Canadian entertainers have It has been quite evident that the last all over Canada have studied and un- Lbrought joy to our lives while we were derstood the Covid-19 pandemic. year-plus has been anything but norat home. They worked very hard to They have led us through the panmal. Things were shut down—like make people happy during tough demic and will keep guiding us shops and small businesses—and times. For example, actors have through the dark woods. things got moved online for a little made films that families at home bit. Now we are just starting to exit could enjoy. Musical artists have the dark woods. Many Canadians are Frontline workers have also made a brought music to people’s lives while working every day to make positive big impact on Canadians through they worked at home. changes . Below are three types of their service. They are what have kept lives that have made a big difference society going through the last year In conclusion, many people in Canada throughout this pandemic. and will keep it going for years to have kept us going and brought joy to come. For our lives over the past year. Whether example, if that's a doctor, frontline worker or the police entertainer, their lives are very imstopped working dur- portant to keep Canada going. ing the pan-

Canadians Making a Let’s start off with doctors and nurses. The Covid-19 pandemic has taken Difference a large toll on Canadians’ health, both

Encanto review

by Ahana Kulkarni, 604 A movie that’s been talked about a lot recently is the latest Disney film, Encanto.

Dolores has super hearing, etc. For whatever reason, Mirabel did not get a gift, unlike the rest of her family.

When her cousin Antonio receives his gift, Mirabel notices cracks starting to appear in the house, and the magic of the house slowly disappears, so Mirabel needs to find out how to save the magic.

Set in Columbia, this movie stars Stephanie Beatriz as the main charac- Two things that really stood out to ter, Mirabel. me in this movie are the animation and the colours. It’s a vibrant film The plot of this movie centres around with a lot of cool backgrounds. The the main character, Mirabel, and her family, the Madrigals.

When each family member turns 5, they receive a “gift” from their magical house.

These gifts work like powers.

Mirabel’s sister Luisa is super strong, her sister Isabella can control plants, her cousin

songs are great, and the Encanto soundtrack made the Billboard top 100.

Fun Fact: The songs are written by Lin Manuel Miranda, who also wrote the music for Hamilton and Moana.

Overall, I would rate Encanto a 5 out of 5 stars. I thought the writing was really good, the songs were great, the animation and character designs were excellent, the colours were vibrant, and it tells a really important message about family.

It’s on Disney+ if you would like to watch it, so if you have Disney+, definitely check it out!

@theHelm ~ page 5

cover and post the next day’s word online in hopes of crushing others' moods.

by Sophia Liu, 804 I used to grab my phone to start scrolling mindlessly through social media every morning. While I still whip out my phone in the morning, I attempt to solve the daily Wordle instead.

Most of my friends and family play Wordle, and even a couple of my teachers play it.

It only takes a few minutes a day, so why not give it a try?

My score for Wordle 230 (February 4)

Wordle is a fun daily game where your objective is to guess a five-letter word. You have six guesses; each time you make a guess, the game gives you information about the letters within the word. It’s pretty similar to the format of Mastermind. There is a new word every 24 hours, released at midnight. Unfortunately, it is not available on the app store; you can only play the game through the website.

Wordle sounds like a simple game, and it is. The simplicity is what makes this game so enjoyable and addictive.

Wordle is all over social media. Whether I’m scrolling through TikTok or Twitter, I’ll usually see something in my feed about Wordle. There are some people on the internet who take this game to a whole other level. I have read tons of theories about the best wordguessing strategies. There are even hackers who dis@theHelm ~ page 6

Political Cartoons

by Svana Chang (803)

by Nathan Nash (803)

Here are the answers to the Geography Corner Challenge from January:

by James Li, 704 9. France

1. Regina

10. Lake Baikal

2. Rocky Mountains 3. U.S.A.

11. Apia 12. Australia

4. Ecuador

13. U.S.A.

5. Cyclones occur in the Indian Ocean, hurricanes occur in southeastern US

14. 16 (Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Cyprus, Libya, Tunisia,

and the Caribbean, and typhoons occur in east Asia.

Algeria, Malta)

6. Vilnius 7. Nepal, Bhutan, China, India, Paki-

15. Murmansk

stan

Hopefully you got all of them correct

8. Germany

and did not cheat in the process! @theHelm ~ page 7

2.

Superhot VR ($24.99)

Games to try if you have an Oculus Quest 2!

by Adi Katoch, 803 There are a lot of games available for the Oculus Quest 2, so I’m going to list some essential games that you should try if you have a Quest 2! In case you don’t know what the it is, I’ll make it short and simple; the Oculus Quest 2 is a Virtual Reality system in which you can play many different games and even use to watch movies! Use of the Oculus Quest 2 is recommended for people aged 13 years and up, but this isn’t a review of the Quest 2, so let’s begin the list!

1. Beatsaber ($29.99)

Most people have probably heard of Beatsaber, but in case you haven’t, Beatsaber is a rhythm game where you have to slice cubes up to the beat of a song. It sounds pretty simple because on paper it should be easy, but once you increase the difficulty or add challenges like one handed mode it can become very difficult. I’d say Beatsaber is a great game to get if you just started playing VR since you can’t really get motion sick, however, there is an epilepsy warning because some songs have a lot of flashing lights.

Next up on the list is Superhot VR, which is a very good action game. The graphics may not look realistic but that’s part of the appeal. The main idea of superhot is that when you stop moving, time stops moving, and the slower you move, the slower time goes. Your main objective is to defeat all of the enemies in the level and keep going. It might seem a bit basic but when you play you’ll feel like you’re in the Matrix - dodging bullets, grabbing them in midair, and fighting through this VR simulation. This game is also beginner friendly because to move your character in the game, you just have to walk around in real life, and it feels very smooth and refined.

One side note is that you do need a good amount of space to play, and you might end up punching your wall by accident a few times!

friendly for all ages*. There are games of any type on Rec Room so if you’re looking for something it’s probably there. One small note is that this game isn’t very beginner friendly since you actually use the control sticks to move around, so if you are a beginner you may get motion sick the first few times you play it, but eventually you will get used to it. Overall, I think that this is a great free game that you should try! *Use of the Oculus Quest 2 is recommended for people aged 13 or older*

4. Job Simulator ($29.99)

Have you ever wanted to simulate having a 9-5 office job? Most people probably wouldn’t like to, but in Job Simulator this job is very fun and entertaining due to the chaotic mishaps that happen in the job. In Job Simulator, there are four jobs which are: office worker, store clerk, auto mechanic, and gourmet chef. It may not seem interesting at first, but when 3.

Rec Room (Free) you try it you’ll see how fun working can be! You work alongside robots and are given many tasks to complete in your job. You can climb up the ranks and maybe even become the boss! This game is beginner-friendly as you move in the game Rec Room is a great game to play to by moving in have fun with friends as you can basireal life and cally play anything on it! There are you also tons of community made games on don’t need Rec Room and you can even make that much your own games too! If you have ever space to heard of Vrchat, Rec Room is similar play. except it is more toned down and @theHelm ~ page 8

Book Reviews

by Esmé Vedelago, 703

THE HUNGER GAMES Book by: Suzanne Collins Genre: Action Fiction I know that this book is popular, and that a lot of you have probably already read the trilogy, or seen the movie. But I just read, and I absolutely loved it! I can’t wait to read the sequel! For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about, or simply know the trilogy by name, I’m going to try my best to tell you about it.

Panem is in the rune of a place once known as North America.

Panem is separated into twelve districts that surround the Capitol. The Capitol forces each district to send one boy and one girl into a fight for death each year to keep the districts in line. The fight to death, known as the Hunger Games, is broadcasted on live TV, and only has one victor. Katniss is sixteen years old, and has volunteered to enter the Hunger Games in the place of her little sister Prim. Katniss has been close to death before, and survival is like a second nature to her. But if she were to win, she would start having to make hard choices. Survival or humanity? Life or love? The road ahead of Katniss is hard, if she wants to survive.

HARRY POTTER Book by: J.K. Rowling Genre: Fiction

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK

Book by: Neil Gaiman Yes, it's gotten to the point where I’m Genre: Fiction struggling for book suggestions. So why not bring out Harry Potter? Chocolate frogs, werewolves, wizards and witches, quidditch, Lord Vold—my apologies—He-Who-Must-Not-BeNamed, and good old house rivalry! (I

Nobody “Bod” Owens, is adopted by super natural beings after his family is murdered by a man named Jack. Characters include: Mr. and Mrs. Owens, his parents, Silas, his guardian, Liz his dead witch friend, Mrs. Lupescu, his tutor, and Scarlet, the human friend.

It’s really hard to make a summary of this book, but I promise it is awesome and good.

myself am a Hufflepuff.) Not reading Harry Potter is one BIG mistake. Harry Potter, an orphaned boy who lives under his aunt and uncle's stairs in a cupboard, finds out he has powerful magical BOOK REVIEW PODCAST, TBC... powers of his own.

Whisked off to Hogby Meera Ghelani, 806 warts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he Hey Bookies! makes friends with Ron and Hermoine, and goes This month was really crazy! Because of this, we weren’t able to record our usual book reon great adventures view. We’re pretty bummed about this, but it while battling Lor— sorry, I did it again. Hewon't be long until our March or even April Who-Must-Not-Beepisode, where we’ll be reviewing Six of Crows Named.

by Leigh Bardugo. But for now, we want to recommend some amazing Black authors for Black History Month!

It’s a really good book.

They made eight movies, - If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin a Harry Potter world, - The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and a play out of the book series.

- Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown - Will by Will Smith @theHelm ~ page 9

The Forest of Reading celebrates Canadian authors, publishers, and illustrators.

It is the only Canadian awards program where students select the winners. Students are encouraged to read at least 5 of the 10 nominated books in a category of their choice to be eligible to vote.

Voting will take place in April.

More information about voting will come in the spring. Visit the topic page here

MATH CORNER Grade 5 & 6 February 2022 Challenge: Game Instructions Video Please use the following digits and operations (only allowed to use each digit and operation once to create the magic number! You must use at least one yellow operation, on green operation, and at least 3 digits!

x

+

-

➗

()

8

1

6

3

0

9

5

Magic Number: 27

Grade 7 & 8 February 2022 Challenge: Game Instructions Video Please use the following digits and operations (only allowed to use each digit and operation once to create the magic number! You must use at least one yellow operation, one green operation, and one pink operation! You must also use at least 3 digits and no digit or operation more than once!

x

+

-

➗

()

^

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Magic Number: 7922

@theHelm ~ page 10

Epic (just kidding, they’re bad)

Dad Jokes

by Sophia Liu, 804

S: What kind of shoes do robbers wear? Sneakers.

tightrope walker? It was craving a well-balanced meal.

R: What do cows most like to

I: Did you hear that I’m read-

read? Cattle-logs.

Q: Why can’t you trust duck I put them in reverse alphabetical order because I felt like it.

doctors? They’re all quacks.

P: What do you call a pig that does karate? A pork chop.

ing a book about anti-gravity?

It’s impossible to put down.

H: How do rabbits travel? By hareplanes.

G: Why did the robber jump in the shower? He wanted to make a clean getaway.

Z: I went to the zoo and saw a baguette in a cage. The zookeeper said it was “bread: in captivity!

F: What runs but never goes anywhere? A fridge.

Y: What did the yoga instructor say when her landlord tried to evict her? Namaste.

X: How does a scien-

J: Why did the jaguar eat the

E: What kind of ghost has the best hearing?

The eeriest.

tist freshen her breath? With eXperi-mints.

O: When do computers over-

D: What do you call a sleeping

W: What kind of music do

N: What do you call someone

C: What do you call a snobby

heat? When they need to vent. dinosaur? A dino-snore.

criminal going down the mummies listen to? Wrap mu- with no body and no nose? Nostairs? A con descending. body Knows. sic.

V: What did the policeman say M: What did one horse say to to his belly button? You’re under a vest.

the other at the dance? “You mustang-o with me.”

U: Why can’t you trust atoms? L: Why did the man get fired They make up everything.

from the orange juice factory?

Lack of concentration.

T: What’s the difference be-

K: Why can’t you trust the tween the bird flu and the swine flu? One requires tweet- king of the jungle? Because he’s always lion. ment and the other an oinkment. @theHelm ~ page 11

B: Why did the man get hit by a bike every day? He was stuck in a vicious cycle.

A: What’s the difference between a poorly dressed man on a tricycle and a welldressed man on a bicycle?

Attire.

Budgie Care 101 with Abdullah Al-Sheikhly (804)

My budgies I’ve owned a lot of budgies over the past three and a half years and I wanted to share how to care for this very interesting, playful and unique parakeet species.

What is a budgie?

For anybody who does not know, a budgie is a small, long-tailed bird in the parakeet family (which is in the parrot family).

Are budgies easy to tame?

Since budgies are prey in the wild, they are naturally skittish and you have to put a lot of effort into taming them.

Do budgies need toys?

Yes, budgies need toys and not just plain old plastic ones. They need engaging, enriching toys that help them forage and shred because as I mentioned before, they are intelligent.

How many budgies should I get?

Budgies are flock animals so they prefer to live with other budgies.

However, you can own only 1 budgie if you give it a lot of extra attention to make up for the lack of budgie friends but if you notice they are lonely (lonely budgies do things like singing to their shadow and reflection) then get them a friend.

How to tell a budgie’s sex?

Can budgies talk?

If you put in a lot of effort by constantly and frequently repeating phrases you want them to learn, then yes. Also, it is easier to teach budgies how to speak human if they don’t live with any other budgies because budgies mimic those around them and when there are lots of budgies around them they mimic the other budgies, but when it’s just humans, they mimic the humans.

How can I tell the age of my budgie?

It’s really hard to tell once they turn 6 months old but you know they’re under 6 months if they have a pinkypurpley cere rather than their gendered cere.

This sometimes doesn’t apply for mutations but generally, male budgies have a blue cere and female budgies have a brown cere.

What type of environment do budgies need?

Try to buy the biggest cage with ½” Are budgies loud? bar spacing you can afford. A cage Budgies are quite vocal and while size of 20 x 18 x 18 is the minimum for sometimes they sing beautifully, oth- 1 budgie. Try to keep the cage clean er times they scream at the top of by scrubbing the entire cage their lungs (usually for a reason (including perches) with warm water Are budgies low-maintenance pets? though). If you cannot handle chirp- and soap weekly and changing the Budgies are often advertised as low- ing becoming basically a permanent material you put on the base (black maintenance pets but that is not the background noise in your home, then and white newspaper, paper towel, case because that’s not a thing. All don’t get a budgie. or scrap paper) every other day. pets require care and attention, even Budgies prefer the same temperafish! So it’s unsurprising that budgies, Do budgies bite? tures as humans (20℃ to 24℃). Also who come from one of the smartest Some budgies do occasionally nip make sure you have an environment animal families (parrots) can’t be fingers but only if you are that is safe for budgies to fly in since locked in a annoying them (by doing they need daily flying time out of the cage and things like touching their cage. stuffed in a feet, back and tail or grabcorner of a bing them) and because What type of food do budgies need? room all budgies are so tiny, their This a highly debated topic, but in my day. bites can’t hurt you. opinion, try to feed them a 60:40 raAre budgies parrots?

Even though budgies are small, they are parrots. What this means is that budgies are very intelligent and they require a lot of attention and enrichment.

tio of pellets to seeds and make sure @theHelm ~ page 12

to also give them lots of vegetables. out after that as this is the only way As a more infrequent treat, give them you won’t neglect your budgie. After spray millet, fruits and natural peanut that, you can clip them. butter.

Should I clip my budgie’s wings?

This is another highly debated topic, but in my opinion, you shouldn’t. It’s cruel to remove a bird’s freedom to fly. However, it does make taming your budgie easier and I know many people neglect their budgies because they get bored of trying to tame them. So if you get a professional clip your budgie’s wings when you first buy your budgie, let its wings grow

Pet Corner Stimpii and Pippin (my dogs)

by Niamh Mercer, 705 When I was eight years old, I really, really, REALLY wanted a pet. One day, my sister found a beetle in my garden, and I fell in love. I named him Rodney. A few days later, my best friend came over for a visit, and I showed her Rodney. We agreed that we could share him as our pet, as she wanted one too. But then I started thinking that maybe Rodney wasn’t a Rodney at all. So, I pulled up a tutorial for how to check the gender of a beetle on my laptop and we took Rodney outside to get a better look. Well, he escaped. That night, my mom and I hatched a plan: we were going to try to convince my dad to get us a rabbit.

It didn’t work.

We pushed at him for a very long time; up until nearly my ninth birthday; until he finally broke.

Extra tips:  Don’t be worried if you don’t see your budgie drinking water. In the wild, drinking water puts them in a vulnerable situation and that’s why they won’t drink in front of big animals like humans.  If your budgie is losing a lot of feathers, don’t get worried! They are just moulting. They do this

Well, he didn’t exactly agree to getting a rabbit.

He told us we could get a dog instead.

After a lot of research, the day that we got our dog finally arrived. We drove to Wellandport (near Welland) and picked up our new puppy.

His name is Stimpii. He spends most of his day sleeping and playing with Pippin, our other dog, but mostly sleeping. He is a black-and-tan short-haired miniature dachshund, and like most dachshunds, is intensely bonded to one person (my mom). However, I wouldn’t recommend visiting him; he loves to bark at strangers.

My other dog, Pippin, is also a black-and-tan short-haired miniature dachshund. We got him because we were tired of playing with Stimpii and thought it would be nice for him to have a friend. We got Pippin from the same place in Wellandport, only we got him three years later. He is still a puppy, meaning that we still have to deal with accidents and whatnot. Unlike Stimpii, he is very friend@theHelm ~ page 13

every few months, mostly at the start of new seasons.  Try not to buy budgies from big box stores. These budgies were often bred in bad conditions and thus have many health problems and shorter lifespans. Adopt from a shelter or buy from a local pet store you trust.

Check out this video about budgie body language!

ly to strangers. Often his tail wags so fast that his entire body wags with it! He is intensely bonded to my dad and loves to sleep and play with Stimpii.

Both of them love sleeping in the sun (in fact, they often cry if we don’t move their bed into it) and they both love their food. I love them both very much and I think they are absolutely adorable!

Fun Facts: Stimpii and Pippin, though we call them ‘brothers’, are actually cousins. Pippin is a little smaller than Stimpii, who is large for a miniature dachshund, and therefore we can call him ‘Pipsqueak.’

P.S. The one with the tongue out is Pippin. The other one is Stimpii.

Writing Prompt Poems More entries from grade 6 poets!

Winter Haiku Poem

Winter Acrostic Poem

by Victoria Minetti

Winter for me is like summer for you.

In the winter you build a snowman or take a Nap I go to To the beach and Eat ice cream or Read a book. I don’t like

by Jenna Jahshan

Snow As White As Milk, So Fluffy It Feels Like Clouds, It's So Cold But Fun!

Poem by Mia Bhandhal

Freezing whether I like warm weather Or Cold whether Reinder you can find in the winter Milkshakes you can find in the summer Everything is better in the summer Poem by Evangeline Morrison

So pretty and bright To beautiful for my eyes As they shimmer and shine Right above my head, as they Shine like diamonds in the night.

Poem by Tenley Imrie @theHelm ~ page 14

Snow tracks

Poem by Ava Hand

Snow tracks in my yard Snow falling from the light blue sky Skating on the thick blue ice Drinking hot chocolate near the fire.

Poem by Tri Huynh

by Ana Green Kopeck

Winter Poem by Selin Halil Snowman by Tab Huang

Poem by Oliver Wojciechowski

Cat and dog by fire Sparks flying into the air love is all around @theHelm ~ page 15

by Olivia Mattatall Poem by Ava Cruickshank

Delicate as snow A beautiful creation Blankets my bad thoughts

Poem by Solomon Bulley

men y w a o d n nter e some s i w t old o mak Erns c l e a h It’s oing t BLAST by Rac I'm g aving a I'm h

Poem

by Molly

by Molly Ma Ma @theHelm ~ page 16

Banana Fritters

by Esmé Vedelago, 703 INGREDIENTS:

½ cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons water ½ cup of heavy cream 1 tablespoon butter ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract ½ cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder Pinch salt 2 large eggs 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled 2 tablespoons whole milk Oil for frying 3 ripe but firm bananas, sliced at ¼-inch slices INSTRUCTIONS:

1. For the caramel sauce, in a small saucepan, cook the sugar and water over a medium heat 2. Stir constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to bubble 3. Continue on medium heat and stir occasionally. The mixture is finished when it turns a deep amber colour 4. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cream and butter 5. The mixture will bubble up violently 6. Stir until it turns back to a liquid, if the hard lumps of caramelized sugar lumps remain, stir over low heat until liquefied 7. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Keep warm until ready to serve 8. Whisk together the baking powder, flour and salt in a large mixing bowl 9. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar till well combined 10. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and whisk until smooth. The add the milk and whisk until smooth 11. Fill a large skillet with enough oil to come ¼-inch up the sides 12. Heat the oil until it begins to simmer 13. Using a fork, coat the banana slices in the batter, lift the slices out, and place them in the hot oil 14. Fry on both side till golden brown, about 1 minute per side 15. Remove from the pan to a paper-towel-lined plate drain 16. Repeat until all banana slices are used up 17. To serve, place 4-6 banana fritters on a plate and drizzle caramel sauce on top Serves 6 @theHelm ~ page 17

Recipe shared by Mr. Hannah

***Not my recipe*** Grating frozen butter is tricky but works well. The "brick" of dough took a while to form with my hands and it is easier to cut with a serrated bread knife.

DELICIOUS and worth the fun!

@theHelm ~ page 18

MANGO MIX BLAST (smoothie recipe)

by Maria Titov, 705

Do you want to know how to make a delicious smoothie?

I’ll tell you how to make an amazing smoothie recipe that I created!

Prep time about 5-10minutes Cook Time 5 minutes Total time, 10-15 minutes Servings, 2-4 Stuff you might need A blender A blender cup if you want Ingredients ½ Frozen mangos ⅔ BlueBlueberries ⅓ raspberries 4 Strawberries 1 tablespoon Vanilla extract 2/4 milk

Photo by Maria Titov, 705

The Recipe 1. Wash the BlueBerries, raspberries and Strawberries 2. Let the berries dry 3. Add the berries into the blender with the Frozen Mangoes 4. Pour the milk into the blender with the mangoes and berries 5. Add the vanilla extract into the blender 6. After you have all your ingredients in the blender, blend all your ingredients until nice and creamy 7. Serve your smoothie to your family or have it yourself 8. ENJOY Thank you for reading or trying out my recipe

@theHelm ~ page 19

Photo by Mr. Hoad-Reddick

“Rose in the Shadow” sketch by Sabrina Kiung, 703

“Eye” digital art by Holly Yates-Krull, 702

“High School Times” sketch by Grace Sun, 701

“Landscape” digital art by Holly Yates-Krull, 702 @theHelm ~ page 20

Nicola Hutton 501

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Grade 6 Artist of the Month Ava Cruickshank, 603

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Grade 7—Christian Bentley-Caron, 705

Grade 8—Kerrington Johnston, 804

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BEST TOBOGGAN HILL

by Oliver Wojciechowski, 601 At the Garth Reservoir, there is a permitted toboggan hill. It is a medium-sized hill. The location is just east of the reservoir in Hamilton, Ontario. The hill is located at 1515 Garth street, just south of Stone Church road west. The slope is steep, so be careful riding down the hill. Look out for bumps on the bottom of the hill because it can be dangerous, but with a good helmet, you will ride just like Lightning McQueen. If you like to go fast down hills, I suggest having a sand dunning board because of its stiffness, which helps with speed. To add some weight, go on the board with your parent to make it more exhilarating and

faster because gravity will pull you down. I built ramps at the bottom of the hill and could fly into the air like a bird. I enjoy the fresh air on top of the hill. There are hay bales all over the place, so nobody flies off into the road. Be an early bird because parking fills up quickly.

Dress warm. See you there!

The Hill

Sand-dunning board

On-campus French Immersion: Students enjoy winter activities led by the Perspectives team from Quebec

Resource: Google maps

French Culture dans la cuisine!

Students made crepes for La fête de la chandeleur.

@theHelm ~ page 24

time he spent on duty, planning how to

by Juliet Finley (705) talk Paul out of killing the lighthouse Part 2 keeper when Paul came Sorry to leave you like that with Peter fallup the lading off the ladder, but when I was just finder. ished saying that Peter fell, my mom called “You’re off duty!” he told Peter. me downstairs for dinner. Since I am quite “Wait!” Peter cried. He wanted to talk to often late, I thought it would be best if I Paul. “How old are you?” hurried downstairs. Oh, you want me to “Fifteen!” Paul told him. talk about Peter now? Makes sense.

“Why are you working on the boat then?”

Peter asked, “you’re really young.”

Peter fell through the air, waving his arms “No, I’m not!” Paul told him. “You’re around wildly. He heard someone shout younger than me and you’re working on at him and he tried to listen, but the this boat! Besides, plenty of boys are words were caught in the wind. Peter was lookouts, or clean up, or keep the sails flailing around as he fell, but he didn’t working, or make the beds. There’s lots of have anything to grab onto. As he fell, he work to be done, and kids are often hired could almost see the icy water waiting to for the jobs.” swallow him up, but suddenly he saw a Peter nodded and climbed down the ladrope tumbling towards him. Right before der slowly, he didn’t want to fall again.

Peter hit the water, he grabbed it. Now When he reached the bottom, he saw a he was hanging right above the water, man standing there. clinging onto the rope for all he was “How long till we reach the port?” Peter worth. asked.

“Pull him onto the boat!” someone “Tomorrow night!” the man said. “‘bout yelled. twenty four hours.”

Peter felt the road slowly pull him up onto Peter walked to his cabin. It was nearly the deck. When he looked up he found midnight but you couldn’t tell because it himself face to face with an extremely was raining so hard you couldn’t see the angry captain. sky. When Peter arrived in the room, “What was the big idea, boy?” the capthree boys were in there—two were playtain asked him. “You can’t die! We need Peter thought about what Paul had said, ing cards and one was sleeping. to have two lookouts! So be more careful the same Paul who had died trying to kill “Why aren't you sleeping?” Peter asked and thank the other lookout! He threw the lighthouse keeper.

Yet here he had the boys on the ground. the rope that saved you!” saved Peter’s life, and Peter was a care“I just woke up,” one of the boys told Peter nodded his head as he shivered. He less boy who had slipped on a ladder, him. “I work from midnight to noon. I’m was very scared after what had just hapnearly drowning.

It wouldn’t have been on break.” pened. He wanted to have a rest and he Paul's fault if Peter had died but he had “I help out in the kitchen,” the other boy really wanted to thank the lookout for saved him.

Then again, Paul had tried to said. “No meals are being made right saving his life. kill the lighthouse keeper. Peter rememnow, and I just finished washing all the bered what Paul had said to him: “I’m not dishes. When I came back, Richard was When Peter got back to his cabin, he took a murderer.”

Paul was going to be a murawake so we thought we’d play a round off his clothes and lay down on the bed, derer, Peter begain to think.

If he stayed of cards.” not bothering to put on a dry outfit. on the boat and survived the accident, “I’m going to have a nap!” Peter mutThere was no one in the room, so he didthen he might be able to stop Paul from tered. “Try to keep it down.” n’t think anyone would care that he didn’t killing the lighthouse keeper and dying The boys nodded and kept quiet as Peter bother getting dressed. He was so sleepy himself.

Peter owed him his life, and this slept. When he woke up he noticed that that he fell asleep before he could think was the way he could repay Paul for savhis bed was wet, probably because he about the man who saved him. ing him. hadn’t taken off his wet clothes before going to sleep earlier. The bell was soundPeter woke up, much too soon in his opinPeter was quite excited the rest of the ing, and Peter knew it was time for him to ion. The bell rang three times and Peter

A Lost Foghorn

knew he had to get up, so he quickly put on his lookout clothes and ran towards the crows rest. Paul was standing at the top looking around frantically as if he expected to bump into something.

“Paul!” Peter called out.

Paul stopped and looked at Peter, “I can’t remember the last time someone called me by my name,” Paul said. “They normally call me kid, lookout, boy, rat.”

Peter let this sink in, then he remembered what he had wanted to say. “Thank you!” he told Paul.

“What for?” Paul asked.

Peter was shocked, “for saving my life of course!” he cried. “You saved me when I fell off the ship!”

“I’m not a murderer!” Paul muttered.

“Of course not,” said Peter “but you weren’t the reason I fell.”

“But in my mind, if someone is going to die and you have the power to save them, and you don’t use that power, you’re just as much a murderer as someone who shot someone.” Paul told Peter.

Peter had never heard anyone talk like that before and he was quite impressed with Paul. He went closer to Paul to ask something when he finally saw something about him that he hadn’t seen before.

Paul wasn’t a man. He was probably fifteen years old—not much older than Peter, yet he had been working so much that he seemed to be a man.

“I have to go!” Paul said, “you’re on watch!”

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get back on duty.

While Peter is off sitting in the crows nest I think I’ll tell you about what Paul was doing when he got off duty.

When Paul reached the cabin, he saw one boy sleeping and one boy reading.

“Hi Woody!” Paul said quietly to the boy reading.

Woody’s real name was Oliver but people were always calling him Woody.

“Did you meet Peter yet?”

“Yeah, he came in a while ago. I have to go now!” Woody said, running out the door.

Paul nodded, he had always wanted to make friends with the other boys on the boat, but they were always on duty or sleeping. When they were off duty and not sleeping, Paul was on duty. Peter was the closest thing he had ever had to a friend, yet they were always on duty at opposite times. He knew something was odd about Peter, and he wanted to find out.

Paul decided the best thing to do was go to the library. Now, he was not allowed in the library, but that hadn’t stopped him from doing it before. When he reached the room, he found a book titled, The Minkama Coast. Paul knew that Minkama was the town they were heading for, so he thought that it would make an interesting read. Paul flipped to page 1 and began to read. When he got to page 78 it read: The Minkama lighthouse was built in 1750. There have been a few parts falling and one fire due to the light, but other than that the lighthouse has always been in great shape, after the accidents it was built to be stronger, and after the fire the light was rebuilt to be more stable.

For information about the accident of 1857 go to page 290

looked at the large grandfather clock in the library. Time to go on duty. He brought the book back to his dorm and hid it under his blankets, then he ran to the crow’s nest. Peter was standing there looking around.

“Time for your break!” Paul told Peter.

Peter was about to head down the ladder when Paul stopped him: “I found a book that said there was an accident this year, but I didn’t see any of the details. You know the details, and you need to tell me.”

Peter stared at Paul, wondering what to do, Paul seemed to know more than most people about the accident. ”What do you want to know?” Peter asked.

“Everything you know.” Paul told him.

“We need to talk, and I need to show you something.”

“You’re on duty now,” Peter said, “and when you’re off duty, I’m on duty.”

“When one of us comes to take the other's place,” Paul told him, “we talk in the crows nest, I need to look at something for a little longer so it might be awhile.”

Peter nodded and climbed down the ladder. He didn’t know what Paul wanted, but he knew Paul had learned something.

When Peter got back to the room, there was one boy in there, reading a book.

Peter decided that he should probably ask about Paul, so he went up to the boy.

“Can you tell me about Paul?” he asked.

“I don’t know Paul well,” the other boy said. “He worked on the ship when I joined the crew. For all I know, he was born on the ship. I have heard some rumours though, so I’ll tell you about them.

From what I know Paul and his older brother were born in Pandina, that’s the Paul looked at the book in surprise. It was town we started off from. His mother was 1857 right now? What accident? he won- sick and died a week after Paul was born, dered. Then suddenly he remembered then five years later, his father went off something the captain had told him on a voyage and never returned. His about Peter, when Peter learned the brother was twelve, seven years older name of the ship he asked if the ship had than Paul, and for months they were pensunk. Paul was suddenly scared. He niless and lived on the streets. But when

@theHelm ~ page 26

Paul was six, his brother, whose name I don’t know, got a job on this ship and managed to convince the captain to let Paul stay with him. When Paul turned nine, he started working on the ship, and his brother had already started climbing the ladder. Now he’s the first mate.”

Peter nodded and headed over to his bed.

He now knew why Paul wanted to kill the lighthouse keeper. His brother had worked from age thirteen in order to feed Paul and himself, and because of the lighthouse keeper being lazy, Paul had lost the only family he had. Peter was worried about what was going to happen when Paul questioned him on the accident. Should he make something up? Or should he tell the truth? He lay in his bed debating this for hours until he fell asleep.

When the bell sounded three times, Peter clambered out of his bunk and headed to the crows nest. When he got up there, he watched as Paul headed down the ladder. He felt a strange feeling coming over him as he watched Paul descend from the nest, rain all around him. It was actually kind of sunny, so there was a small rainbow in the sky, nearly entirely hidden by the dark clouds. As Peter stood on watch, he thought about what to say to Paul.

Finally Paul came up the ladder. When Peter was about to head down, Paul stopped him.

“We need to talk,” Paul insisted. “You

know something you shouldn’t. Tell me.”

Peter looked at the boy in front of him, and didn’t know what to say. On one hand, he could tell Paul the truth, but then he might tell someone else, and no one would believe it. Then Peter might be locked up and would drown in the accident. He could make something up, but he might put Paul off track and then Paul wouldn’t survive the accident. I’ll just tell the truth, Peter thought, but tell him to

“Well, about 1845.” Paul guessed.

“No,” Peter reported, “I was born in 2008.”

Paul stared at Peter.

“That’s in the future,” he cried.

“Well, kind of.” Peter muttered.

“What do you mean, kind of?” Paul asked.

“I think I got sent back in time,” Peter reported, “and I know what's going to happen to this ship.”

“Well, what?”

Paul asked.

“It’s going to…”

Peter started.

“Hey boys,” someone from below yelled, “one of you come here and give the lad in the kitchen a hand. It’s nearly time for lunch.”

Reluctantly, Peter climbed down the ladder and helped to get lunch ready.

He didn’t do much except drop lumps of bread into a bunch of paper bags.

Soon a group of people came rushing into the cafeteria. They all sat at a table “Couple” digital art by Holly Yates-Krull, 702 and began to talk. Peter ran back to his room, keep quiet about it. grabbed his canteen, and ran back to the “Okay Paul, you can’t tell anyone what cafeteria.

I’m about to tell you.”

Paul nodded.

I won’t bother telling you about Peter and “Well,” Peter started, “I am not a lookPaul’s time that day working. I won’t tell out.” you about when the rain stopped, only to “I figured that,” Paul said “you don't start up again an hour later. I will fastknow anything about being lookout, and forward to a few minutes before the acciyou slipped on the ladder. That is not dent. something that lookouts do.”

“Anyway,” Peter continued, “I don’t have 1:00 a job. I’m a school boy. But I don’t go to Peter had just gotten off duty and was schools like the ones you go to. You see, walking towards the room where he when do you think I was born?” @theHelm ~ page 27

slept, when suddenly, he heard Paul scream, “I can’t see the light house.

The light isn’t on.”

Peter had known this was going to happen, but he was scared.

“Hurry, send a flare,” someone yelled.

“Slow down the boat. Take down the sail, or we’ll crash.”

Peter looked around in horror. People were running everywhere, trying to stop the ship, but no one could see anything because it was a moonless night, and it was still raining. Suddenly a loud scraping sound interrupted the shouting.

“We’re taking on water!” someone yelled. “We’ll be sunk in five minutes.”

“Get to the lifeboats.”

“They won’t do us much good in this rough water.”

“Every man for himself.”

Peter watched as men jumped off the boat, or tried to get on lifeboats. Peter watched as boys from his dorm came running out from below deck.

“What do we do?” one of them yelled.

“The boat is going down.”

“Swim for it,” one yelled and dived off the boat into the icy water, starting to swim for shore.

The others followed. Peter didn’t follow, but he knew he had to get off the boat.

Suddenly the boat started to sink at an angle, and Peter was thrown into the water. It felt like needles to his skin, he was in such a shock he couldn’t move. His arms were numb, and he couldn’t move his legs enough to kick. He tried to flail in the water, but he couldn’t move enough to fight the water. He watched the boat sink and to his enormous surprise, he watched Paul dive out off the crows nest and into the water. Paul surfaced and began to swim for shore. That's all Peter saw, because right then, he went under.

Peter instantly began choking on the water. He was unable to breathe and was gasping for air. He couldn’t move his body and his eyes stung. The boat was down, and most of the crew had drowned already. Peter fought with all his strength but he couldn’t move above the water, slowly he began to sink.

ing it is to have an invisible, puny, nobody of a brother? Like, literally, my friends talk about how their sisters are competing in track competitions, or their brothers winStory by Aaron Parasu, 703 ning awards. Why can’t you accomplish anything decent in your life?”

First day of school - September 5th Again, I didn’t respond. Didn’t defend myself because, well, he was right. I nev“Hey, dimwit,” said my brother, Jake. er accomplished anything academically or “Can you hurry up? We’re going to be athletically. The weight of not doing anylate, not that I care, but I assume you thing special with my life was even heaviwant to make a good impression.” er, as I had an over-achieving sister and “What about breakfa-” “Shut up. I woke up at 5 AM this morning an extremely athletic brother. to work out and make a healthy breakfast. Obviously, you didn’t make yourself “Alright, welcome to English Room 107,” greeted the woman at the front of the breakfast.” I sighed, opening my mouth to speak but my brother went on, smirk- classroom. “My name is Ms. Patterson, and I’m looking forward to teaching you ing. “Or work out.” all.” She then grabbed the attendance “Whatever, can we just leave?” I said frustrated. He always had to mention my sheet and started calling off names.

“Anderson, William?” size.

“Here,” said the redhead sitting next to “Alright, say no more, get in the car and me.

I’ll drive us to school.”

Ms. Patterson went on saying the rest of Ever since Sarah left 2 weeks ago for uni- the names until the name before mine, versity, I’ve felt more alone than ever. My “Uvonic, Olivia? Sorry, I might not be prosister always had a way of making me feel nouncing it correctly.” appreciated, which was a rare occurrence “Yes, yes, ma’am, you’re correct.” in my household. In a sense, she was my Ms. Patterson looked down at the attendance sheet, as I tensed, knowing my confidence booster, especially on days name was next. like today. Sarah promised she’d text every day while she was gone, but those “Watson, Thomas?”

“Here,” I swallowed, “m-ma’am.” had become much less common. I was She looked at me and paused for a moexpecting at least one text from her toment. “Watson…. You don’t happen to day, but no luck so far. be Sarah Watson’s brother, do you?”

“Um, yes, she’s my sister.”

I don’t even know why I felt so fearful about the school. Maybe it was how eve- “Ah, she was a very knowledgeable stury single teacher always compared me to dent. I expect great things from you, my siblings. They’d always expect me to young man!”

“Tch, of course, you do,” I muttered unbe super smart, getting top grades, ander my breath. swering every question. Eh, I do pretty alright in school—nothing special.

That happened all day, in math, phys. ed, Some teachers expect me to be some top athlete, but once they see my height art: everything. Don’t get me wrong. I loved all the things my siblings accomand fitness level, they think otherwise. plished, and I felt proud to be related to “Bro, why do you look so red? What are them, but I want to be more than just “Sarah’s dopey brother” and “Jake’s unyou? Afraid or something?” Jake broke the silence in the coordinated sibling.” I especially hated it car. He awaited when the phys. ed teacher, Mr. Morrison, my response to spat out his coffee when he read my his tease, which name. In fact, he made me run an extra three laps around the field, in addition to never came, so the eight previous laps, to see if I could he continued. do it. Which, I, in fact, could not.

“Do you know how embarrass-

Invisible

@theHelm ~ page 28

Friday, September 9th My brother forgot to drive me home for the third time this week, and it’d only been five days. I walked back home on those days, trying to memorize the best route as this would presumably occur many times throughout the school year.

When I got home from school, I was greeted by my mom, surprisingly. Instead of usually being at work until 11:00 at night, she was here. She was holding a plateful of cookies, which only meant she had bad news. I looked at around the room, trying to see if there were any clues about what she was hiding.

“Sweetie, how was school? I’m sure you had a great day, my handsome, intelligent boy!” she said, fakeness oozing out of her voice.

That’s when I saw it. The suitcases in the back of the kitchen. Of course, she was buttering me up because she had to leave. Or did she? I really never knew if she had to go anywhere anymore. More of just an excuse to get away from her kids. “You’re leaving, aren’t you?” I said, fatigued.

“Just for two weeks, baby. I promise I won’t miss your birthday ever again!”

“You said that about last Christmas, saying you’d never miss another family occasion again! Look where we are now.”

“Sweetheart, not to be rude, but who in our family really, truly celebrates your birthday?”

Ouch, that hurt. She wasn’t wrong though. I usually just ordered a new comic book or something off my mom’s computer.

“Whatever, enjoy your trip.” I spat, walking upstairs. I was starting to get annoyed of no one caring about me.

2 months later, Saturday, November 12th.

I woke up on the day I was visiting my dad’s place, not excited about it at all, knowing that he would just be with his girlfriends all day. My dad may be one of the biggest bachelors ever. I had to bike there because my brother was sleeping, so he couldn’t drive me, and of course,

mom was on another one of her trips.

I opened up the garage door to get my bike. After that, I headed off to my dad’s house.

happened with Dad, but I had been finding ways to cope.

While I was on the bus, I pulled one of my comics out of my bag and started reading it. It was I’ve always loved riding my bike. It’s a called “The Avengers”. I started good way to get rid of stress. I’ve also getting into the book untilhad a love for nature since I was a kid— “Hey, buddy,” I heard at the the trees growing, the flowers bloomfront of the bus, “this is your ing—they’re all so beautiful. stop,” said the bus driver, as I put my comic book in my bag.

I arrived at my dad’s house and got off I got off the bus and started my bike. I rang the doorbell and knocked, walking to my house. no response. I tried again. No response. I repeated this pattern six times until he Once I got in, I took off my jacket finally opened the door. and boots, took the comic from “Hey, buddy.” he said, with a nauseous my bag and started walking to tone in his voice. the living room. I saw my brother “Hi, Dad,” I responded, I realized there was in the kitchen, but I put my was a girl to his right. She was probably bag on the couch and started to another one of his girlfriends. read, ignoring him. A couple of “Come in,” he said. He was so drunk I minutes later, I heard a loud could already hear it. voice yelling my name.

“So, what did you want to do?” I said, as I “Yo, Thomas,” I heard my broth- “Oceanview” photo by Maria Titov, 705 almost puked at the putrid smell in the er say. “Whatcha’ reading?” house.

I failed to respond.

“I don’t know, I mainly wanted to intro“I said, whatcha reading?” duce you to my new girlfriend. Her name “None of your business,” I reis Tiffany,” he said proudly. plied fiercely, She looked like she was drunk too, her “Gimme that!” hair was a mess, and she was still in her “Hey! Give that back-” pyjamas.

“And what are you going to do “Hey, Tiffany,” I said politely, hoping she about it?” he ripped it up as he wouldn’t be a brat. said it.

“Hey, your dad told me all about you. You “No! I was reading that! Why sound like a coward,” she responded, would you do that?”

“Tiffany! I thought I told you not to be “Because I can,” he replied, mean,” Dad defended me, but I didn’t care. All the girls he brought home were I was furious. I was just starting so annoying and bratty. to get into it, and of course, he “Hey buddy, that’s all I called you here had to rip it up. He left the room for, you can leave now,” he said. as he threw the ripped-up pages “Wait, what? Are you kidding me, I really on the ground. I picked them up didn’t just bike down here for 20 minutes, and threw them out. I didn’t just so you could show me your new brat know what to do. Then, an idea of a girlfriend?” I yelled furiously. I was so flew into my mind… why not mad that I could break something with make my own comic? I’ve always “Nighttime” photo by Maria Titov, 705 my bare hands. “Whatever, I guess I’ll just been a good writer—nobody leave then! Bye, dad!” knew about it though. It wouldn’t be December 17th, the Last day of school published or anything, but I could show it before the Holiday Break to Sarah, maybe. She always enjoyed my Saturday, November 21st, 1 week later work, and it would be something to look “Wow, you sure have been engrossed forward to for the holiday break! I started with that,” said a voice. I jolted my head School was the same as it always was. No to work on it and decided on the name: around. It was Jake. one noticed me, I didn’t notice anyone, “The Revengers”.

“What do you want now? Just leave me and I liked it that way. No pressure. I’d alone.” I said perturbed. been on edge for a little while with what “Relax, relax. You know, I’ve always been @theHelm ~ page 29

Joke shared by Jack Clifford, 704

kind of hard on you, but lately, you’ve been a lot less annoying.”

“That’s because I’ve been coming to my room every day, you know, to work on my co-” “Yes, yes! That. Keep it up. I’ve got friends coming over later and I don’t want you embarrassing me,” he said, patting me on the back. “So, whatever you’re doing…don’t stop.”

He walked out of the room, while I said, “I don’t plan on it.”

Throughout the break, everything was the same. Jake brought his friends over and had parties every other night. Sarah finally came home but was glued to her study books. Mom was home but wasn’t really home, and Dad, well, Dad never showed up.

Sadly, though, for all the wrong reasons.

They tried to take the money for themselves, trying to splurge on new vacations and vodka, but luckily, Sarah stopped them. She taught me how to manage my money properly, especially at a young age, and told me she would help me with it until I could take care of it myI wasn’t all that sad, I just wished I had self. Jake, though—Jake was really, really my comic book. Yeah, I could’ve created proud of me. At first, I thought it was a new one, but two months of work had because he could brag to his friends just gone down the drain. I just felt desabout it. But he told me something I’d paired. never forget: School happened. We did some holiday I didn’t know it at the time, but my broth- “I always knew you were destined for activities, baked some cookies, made er was growing more concerned about success, Tommy. I know I’ve always been some crafts, etc. In my last class of the how sad I was. He even left a party once hard on you, made fun of you, but it was day, I got so bored of all the festivities, I just to check on me. because, well, because I was jealous. You decided to work on my comic book. No were always so creative, so out of the one would notice anyway, I never did box, and I hated it. I ripped up any confianything in class.

January 5th, First day back dence you had, and I am so, so sorry. I will always be there for you. And it’s not I was almost finished with the comic, I I walked into school, my head down until because of the money, or the power you just had to finish the very last part. It’s some random kid patted me on the have. I’ve now just realized what you’re where the lonesome revenger finally shoulder. I whipped my head up in confu- capable of, and I should’ve never tried to takes charge of his fears and oozes confi- sion, and he just gave me a thumbs up. I stop you. Go out and make more comics, dence. It’s what I dream to do one day, was beyond confused. Suddenly, I I’ll be supporting you from right here.” to win the battle against my cowardice. walked right into my teacher.

Maybe one day.

“S-sorry, Mrs. Chesterfield! I didn’t mean His words have stuck with me, and little to, I wasn’t looking where-” did he know that he was the one who ‘Ring Ring’ “Don’t worry about it dear,” she said made me create the comic. warmly. “Have you had a chance to look “That’s it, students, enjoy your break! at the posters of your comic book?”

That day, I changed. But, I didn’t become Make sure to finish reading up to page “My- my what?” egotistical or greedy with my newfound 164 for next year!” my teacher laughed. “Comic book, dear. You left it in my class- success. I reveled in it. I enjoyed, for the No one else did. room, and, well, I just thought it was so first time, being the centre of attention. I good. I had to publish it.” felt proud.

I rode the bus home, but once I got inShe awaited my response, but I was tak- I felt proud of myself, which I realized, side, I realized something was wrong. en aback. Why would she do this? had been the goal the whole time.

Where was my comic book? I rummaged And…were my comics actually good? Is _____________________ for what seemed like forever until I gave that why that boy patted me? up. God, the one thing that made me feel “I’m sorry, I should’ve let you know. I did Now, I am not only a comic writer. I am a happy in life was gone. Great. try to email your father, but I never reworld-renowned author. I have many ceived a reply. Your mother the same, my accolades and accomplishments, and it’s child.” thanks to trusting my gut and working “So, people…people actually like it?” hard at something I loved. My brother, “Like it! No, no dear. They love it,” she Jake, is a world-famous former basketball smiled. “It’s a groundbreaking success.” player and now coach, while my sister is a pediatrician, as she always loved to help I was flabbergasted. Me, actually good at children. My mother, sadly, lost her busisomething? This was incredible. It turned ness but regained a new sense of purout that Mrs. Chesterfield had published pose and helped form a better relationit to a really reputable publishing compa- ship with all of her kids. My father decidny and that they were going to pay me ed to improve himself and sober up. He’s more money than I could count. now looking out for us and is happy, as he was able to restore some good memMy parents were so, so proud of me. ories towards the end of his life. @theHelm ~ page 30

CBC Futuristic Front Page Writing Competition

Congratulations to Annie Collins, Clara Lam (702) and Grace Sun (701) whose short stories were selected for the Polar Expressions publication this year.

Thank you to all the students who participated in the

Polar Expressions Student Contest!

THE CHALLENGE: We want Grades 7 to 12 students to give us a glimpse of the great Canadian novel in the year 2172. Your challenge is to write the first page of a novel set 150 years in the future, with your protagonist facing an issue that's topical today and setting the scene for how it's all playing out in a century and a half.

WHAT YOU CAN WRITE: Your entry can be 300-400 words in length (the title is not included in the word limit); written in any genre.

WHO CAN ENTER: This contest is open to all Canadian residents who are full-time students

enrolled in Grades 7 to 12. Entries will be judged in two categories: Grades 7 to 9 and Grades 10 to 12.

GUIDES: Visit Curio.ca for discussion questions and writing tips from Canadian writers, like Linwood Barclay, Fonda Lee, Cherie Dimaline, Erin Bow, Katherena Vermette, M.G. Vassanji and Vikki VanSickle.

WHEN YOU CAN SUBMIT: Feb. 1 to 28, 2022.

The competition closes at 9 p.m. ET on Feb. 28, 2022.

HAVE QUESTIONS? Email us at cbcbooks@cbc.ca.

“Elora winter walks” — photos by Mr. Hoad-Reddick

@theHelm ~ page 31

Sunset photos by Henry Tierney, 804

@theHelm is the HSC Middle School paper to all those who contributed to the February issue. Bravo!

To see your work in a future issue, share it via the Google Form Ms Gutauskas & Ms Kee @theHelm ~ page 32