STRONG The Magazine for Girls Issue 8. Spring 2019

ISSUE 8 SPRING 2019 $12.50

LET’S TALK BOOKS! We asked our STRONG role models about their favorite books and who their literary heroines are.

Plus

a STRONG Girl’s Guide to Budgeting, Litt le Miss Fix It —All About Kno ts with celebrity expedi tion leader Megan Hine, You r Planet, Your Future—T he Art of Composting, STRONG Body - Mindful or Mind Full?, Growing Up In... a Multicultural Household, quizzes, rev iews and so much more!

Be EMPOWERED and INS PIRED by STRONG!

INSIDE STRONG THE WORLD AT HER FEET An interview with professional soccer player, Madeline Keane

THE ANCIENT ART OF MEHNDI We talk to a girl growing up in a multicultural household and learn all there is to know about henna!

THE SURGEON We talk to breast surgeon oncologist, Dr. Andrea Barrio about her career.

DELICIOUS SPRING VEGGIES! We show you how to prepare some yummy veggies to keep 1 your body STRONG!

SPRING 2019 ISSUE 8 Founder/Publisher/Editor Sarah Beach Front Cover Ema Whittaker Photography Ema Whittaker Copy Editor Beth Lubliner Contributors Farrah Minnich Lisa Williams Megan Hine Sejal Shah Heather Priest Jillian Desiderio With thanks to our STRONG role models Brady Naia Soraya Regan Lydia Eily Daisy Lucy Savannah Sophia Dazire Ava Maryn Ady 2

CONTENTS 4

MY FAVORITE BOOK IS...

We asked some of our STRONG role models about their favorite books

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STRONG CAREERS—THE SURGEON We talk to Dr. Andrea Barrio, a breast Surgeon Oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering

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STRONG BODY—DELICIOUS SPRING VEGGIES STRONG’S nutritionist, Farrah Minnich, on how to prepare some delicious and healthly food

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STRONG SKILLS—A STRONG GIRL’S GUIDE TO BUDGETING Budgets can sound scary, but what they’re really about is control of your finances!

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LITTLE MISS FIX IT—ALL ABOUT KNOTS Celebrity Expedition leader and adventurer Megan Hine talks to us about some of the most useful knots to know!

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MY LITERARY HEROINE We talked to some STRONG girls about which females in literature they look up to, and why

28 GROWING UP IN... A MULTICULTURAL HOUSEHOLD 34

STRONG QUIZ—WHICH LITERARY HEROINE ARE YOU?

Mayari Gulati talks to us about what it’s like to grow up in the UK with both British and Indian heritage

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THE ANCIENT ART OF MEHNDI A look at henna around the world

47 THE WORLD AT HER FEET 50 STRONG REVIEWS

An interview with professional soccer player, Madeline Keane

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YOUR PLANET, YOUR FUTURE—THE ART OF COMPOSTING STRONG’s Heather Priest on why composting is so important for the planet and how you can start at home.

STRONG MIND - MINDFUL OR MIND FULL? A look at mindfulness

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MY FAVORIT Name: Soraya Age: 11 Favorite book at the moment: Fever

by Laurie Halse Anderson

Name: Ava Age: 11 Favorite book at the moment: Throw Like a Girl by Jennie Finch

Name: Daisy Age: 11 Favorite book right now: The Last Star by Rick Yancey 4

Name: Lucy Age: 13 Favorite book right now: Carry On

by Rainbow Rowell

Name: Savannah Age: 12 Favorite book right now: The Summer of Broken Things by Margaret Peterson Haddix

TE BOOK IS Name: Dazire Age: 11 Favorite book at the moment: Lifeboat

by Susan Hood

Name: Sophia Age: 13 Favorite book right now: Wonder

by RJ Palacio

Name: Brady Age: 12 Favorite book at the moment: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

Name: Naia Age: 12 Favorite book at the moment: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

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STRONG CAREERS

THE SURGEON

Photo credits on this page: Memorial Sloan Kettering

Dr. Barrio, thank you so much for

agreeing to talk to STRONG about your career. You’re a breast surgical oncologist, can you explain what that is?

A breast surgical oncologist is a surgeon who specializes in the treatment of breast cancer.

Each issue we talk to a woman

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about her career. This spring, we catch up with Dr. Andrea Barrio, a breast surgical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC.

What kind of training did you go through to get to your position?

I received my MD from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine (now known as the David Geffen School of Medicine). I completed five years of residency in General Surgery at New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center and one year of fellowship in Breast Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

Do you remember how old you were when you knew you wanted to study medicine?

To be honest, I can’t remember a defining moment that shaped my decision to become a doctor. When I think back, I just can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a doctor!

Were you always interested in the sciences at school or did you enjoy other subjects too?

I loved science when I was in school; it was definitely my favorite subject.

History and Art —not so much. In high school, I was also a cheerleader, and I was definitely “the nerd” of the bunch. My friends used to call me “Brainio” as kind of a play on my last name. I knew in high school I was going into medicine, so when I entered college, I declared as premed with a major in Biology. When I

started college, I knew I was no longer “the smartest” person —everyone in college was smart! So after a six month adjustment period and a major reality check, I got my act together and knew that I would really have to put in the effort if I wanted to succeed in college.

Which you obviously did!

Studies have found that, at the age of about 11, many girls are really interested in STEM subjects, but that by age 15 they have lost that interest.

Did you ever feel like you were the only girl or woman in the room, or that your interest in medicine made you in any way “different”?

I think, in high school, it can be very hard to stay focused. There is a lot of pressure to be fun or cool, and studying was not considered cool when I was growing up. I never felt different because I liked medicine, but at times felt “different” because of how important it was for me to do well in school. It’s important for girls to stay focused on what’s important for you, and not be distracted by outside noise.

When did you know you wanted to work in women’s health and breast surgery specifically?

I didn’t know I wanted to do breast surgical oncology until I was a 4th year surgery resident. That year, I rotated through the Breast Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center and I immediately was drawn to the specialty. Breast cancer treatment is so unique; it is a rapidly evolving field with practice changing trials continually emerging. How we treat patients today is very different than what we did even 10 years ago! I especially loved the relationships that are forged with each patient, as they go through surgery and treatment and I really enjoy being part of each woman’s journey.

One of the things that struck me when I visited MSK was the number of women working there. Do you think there are generally more female surgeons working in women’s healthcare than in non-gender specific medicine?

Seeing so many women around me is the norm to me, so it doesn’t stand out as being unique! I think more female surgeons are drawn to women’s healthcare than other surgical oncology specialties, although over the years, women have really become a major force in many surgical specialties.

Surgery to remove a cancerous lump in a breast is called a lumpectomy. Surgery to remove a breast is called a mastectomy.

Have there been people or events in your life that have inspired you to become a surgeon?

There were many things in my life that influenced me to think about surgery. When I was in medical school, my mother was diagnosed with colon cancer. She received about three months of chemotherapy and radiation, followed by surgery and then more chemotherapy. Her surgeon was amazing—he was technically superb (meaning he had really “good hands”) and he was so genuinely elated after her surgery when her pathology report demonstrated that the tumor had completely disappeared with chemotherapy! One year later, I started my surgical rotation in medical school and I fell in love with being in the operating room. I had never pictured myself as a surgeon, and after just one week of surgery, I knew I could not do anything else with my

life. I had great mentors in medical school who were excellent surgeons who showed me that I could be a successful surgeon and balance a career and a family.

Do you receive a lot of support from your colleagues at MSK? I am incredibly lucky to work at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Not only is it the best cancer hospital in the country, I work with an incredible group of surgeons who constantly look out for each other and help each other. My boss, who is the Chief of the Breast Service at Memorial, is probably the best mentor I have ever had in my life. She is a strong, intelligent, confident surgeon who leads by example and is incredibly dedicated to developing the careers of young surgeons. She has helped me write papers, develop research projects, and put together talks for national meetings …the list is endless. I credit a huge amount of my success to her, and she inspires me to be the best surgeon I can be.

Mentors can be so important. Has there been a time when you have questioned your choice of career?

I have never questioned my choice of career. But being a surgical oncologist can be stressful. And it’s not uncommon to hear surgeons talk about getLymphedema is a chronic swelling in the arm that can happen after all the lymph nodes are removed in the armpit as part of a patient’s cancer treatment.

ting “burned out”. The hours are long, which often keeps me away from my family. And it’s particularly hard when a patient isn’t doing well, for example, if she has a complication from surgery,

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or if her cancer returns. It’s hard not to “bring your work home”. But then there are a lot of really good moments, as so many patients do really well, and that keeps me motivated.

How much of your work is seeing patients, how much is performing surgeries, and how much is research/ speaking at conferences etc.?

I spend about 80% of my time doing clinical activities such as seeing patients or performing surgeries and 20% doing research.

Your research focuses on lymphedema, I believe?

Yes. Lymphedema is a chronic swelling in the arm that can happen after all the lymph nodes are removed in the armpit as part of a patient’s cancer treatment. We still don’t understand very much about why some women get lymphedema and others don’t.

We are studying how often women get lymphedema and looking at different risk factors to understand if some women are at higher risk for getting lymphedema than others.

Can you give me a kind of day in the life of Dr. Andrea Barrio?

I am usually in the operating room two days a week. On those days, I wake up at around 4:30am, get ready, and drive to work, which takes about an hour. The operating room starts at 7:30am in the morning. I usually do anywhere from three to six surgeries in one day, and usually finish around 5:00pm. In between surgeries, I do paperwork from clinic, I check test results, and I call patients. Then I usually go home around 6:30pm and get home around 7:30pm.

Often, when patients come to see you for the first time, they have just had a cancer diagnosis, which is pretty life-changing. Is this a difficult part of your job?

The initial consultation is usually harder for the patient than it is for me. Patients are very fearful at their

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first visit, because they don’t know enough about their diagnosis or their treatment. That initial consult for me is usually very rewarding because most patients leave feeling “relieved” because they understand more about the cancer and their treatment plan.

As you’ve mentioned, a big part of your job is performing surgeries. Can you talk a little about the surgeries you routinely perform, and who is with you supporting you when you are in the operating theater?

I perform surgery on the breast and the lymph nodes. Usually we remove the cancer in the breast with either a lumpectomy or removal of the whole breast, depending on the size of the cancer. At the same time, we usually perform a a biopsy on the lymph nodes to see if they have been affected with cancer.

We have a lot of people in the operating room helping out, including a scrub nurse who hands us instruments during surgery, a circulating nurse, a physician assistant who assists with surgery, a fellow or a medical student, and me (the surgeon).

As well as a love of science, there seem to be a lot of qualities that people need to have to be a successful surgical oncologist, what do you think some of those are?

ABOUT BREAST CANCER •

The color pink is associated with breast cancer awareness. Every October, people around the globe wear pink and take part in activities to try to raise awareness and reduce the stigma associated with breast cancer.

•

1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.

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Breast cancer is most common in women over 70, but it can occur at any age. Women over 40 years old should have annual screening (called a mammogram) to look for early signs of the disease.

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Catching the disease early is key. People with small, localized cancers have a survival rate of 99% five years after their cancer.

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Some risk factors for cancer are your age, whether or not you smoke, and your level of alcohol consumption.

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Men get breast cancer too—although it is far less common.

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Some families carry a gene that makes it more likely they will develop breast cancer. People in these familes have to take extra special care to monitor their breasts regularly. Some of them choose to have preventative surgery to avoid getting cancer.

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The actress Angelina Jolie carries the breast cancer gene (BRAC1). In 2013 she opted to have a prophylactic mastectomy (the preventative removal of her breasts).

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After surgery, many women have reconstruction.

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Celebrites who have battled breast cancer include Cynthia Nixon, Sheryl Crow, and Kylie Minogue.

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The founder, editor, and publisher of STRONG, Sarah Beach, was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer in October 2018 and underwent a double mastectomy. Thanks to Dr. Barrio, she is now cancer free!

Definitely compassion, empathy, intelligence, hard-working, and inquisitive!

What is the most rewarding part of your career?

By far, the most rewarding part of my career is my relationship with each patient. These patients keep me motivated to always do my best, to stay humble, and to always give my best effort every time I am in the operating room.

Dr. Barrio, thank you so much for talking to us about your incredibly important, life-saving work!

Sources: The American Cancer Society and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

1. On the right hand side—we added Reagan! 2. There’s a candle missing from the mantelpiece. 3. We introduced some art work above the fireplace.

4. Lucy (second from the left) is missing a foot! 5. We fixed Naia (center)’s jeans. 6. We added some more flowers to Brady’s jeans (right hand side). 7.

There’s a extra leaf on the picture at the left hand side of the image. 8. Daisy (center right)’s t-shirt is tied up in the top image.

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE

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Just for fun— can you spot the eight differences in the photos below?

STRONG BODY

DELICIOUS SPRING VEGGIE

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ES!

STRONG’s nutritionist, Farrah Minnich, talks about looking after your body this spring with some tasty spring vegetables!

Did you know that the ideal diet is made up of half vegetables? That’s right! Ideally, half of what we should be eating each and every day should be...vegetables!! Vegetables provide so many essential vitamins and minerals necessary for the human body to function optimally. And spring time is a wonderful time to start experimenting with new and different vegetables—there are so many in abundance at this time of year! Here, we introduce you to two you may not have tried yet! Challenge yourself to try one new vegetable each week this spring, and by the summer, think of all the vegetables you will have eaten! Vegetables do a body good!

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BEET SALAD

You will need: 3-4 beets 1 lime, juiced 1 orang, juiced 2 Tablespoons of red wine vinegar 2 Tablespoons of olive oil Salt and Pepper

1. Remove the tops off of the beets with a sharp knife.

2. Chop into

quarters and place on a cookie sheet. Roast in the oven at 375°F for about 45 mins.

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3. Let them cool

and then cut the skin from the beets.

Cut them into quarter inch pieces. Set aside.

4. In a fresh bowl,

add the juice of your lime and your orange.

5. Add the red

wine vinegar to the lime and orange juice mixture, and olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

6. Drizzle the

dressing over the beets and enjoy!

You can add some orange zest (the outer part of the peel) for an extra zing!

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ARTICHOKES WITH DIPPING SAUCE

You will need: 2 artichokes 3 Tablespoons of Greek yogurt 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 tablespoon dijon mustard A pinch of garlic powder A pinch each of salt and pepper

1. Cut the

bottoms off two artichokes.

2. Place in a

steamer or saucepan with two inches of water and steam for 45 minutes.

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3. For the dipping sauce, squeeze the lemon and mix together with the yogurt, mustard, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

4. Once cooked and

cooled, peel the leaves from the artichoke, dip in the sauce, and enjoy.

Scrape the “meat” from the leaves with your teeth.

As you get further into the artichoke you will get more and more “meat”.

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STRONG SKILLS

By Lisa Williams

A budget can sound like a scary word. Or make

you feel like you might have to give something up.

What it really is about is control. Control over YOUR money. How you want to make/earn/get it, and save/

share/spend it. It is a lifelong exercise with a lot of learning about yourself along the way. According to the dictionary, a budget is an estimate of income and expenditure for a set period of time. Income is the money that comes to you through an allowance or a job. Expenditure is funds or money that you spend.

Income is the money that comes to you through an allowance or a job.

Expenditure is funds or money that you spend.

If you find the prospect of managing a budget daunting or overwhelming, taking the emotion out of budgeting may be helpful. Think of a budget as a positive thing. It can be thrilling to have and manage a budget. You will learn about your likes and dislikes, and what things are worth to you in particular.

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You may find it interesting that you feel differently about spending your own money that you have earned or received as a gift, as opposed to when you are spending someone else’s money. For instance, if you want that concert sweatshirt and your parents tell you to use your own, saved money, do you analyze that purchase decision more deeply? It is very normal to value money you earned or received as a birthday gift more than if you are just given money to purchase an item. Understanding your feelings about your money is important because it can help you delay gratification and avoid impulse shopping. An important step to managing your money wisely.

So, how do you choose what to buy and when to buy it? Is the item “worth” buying?

Convenience.

Do you buy a bottle of water when you are thirsty, or wait until you get home? Is it easier to run into a small drugstore to buy shampoo or deal with shopping in a big box

: O T E ID U G S L’ IR G G N O R A ST

BUDGETING

How to stay in control of your spending and saving!

store? What is the tradeoff?

Brand.

According to Wikipedia, “a brand is an overall experience of a customer that distinguishes an organization or product from its rivals in the eyes of the customer”. Is the brand of the product you are buying “worth” the extra money? Is it “worth” the money you would save if you bought a nonbrand product?

Price.

The bottom line is you can only buy items you can afford.

The ability to delay gratification to wait for something you want is a muscle that you should exercise your entire life.

You will enjoy and cherish your purchase so much more if you work towards and wait for it.

Here is an example: One common drugstore mascara is bought every two seconds in the United States. That’s 40,000 sold every day

(Insider—Refinery29 November 21, 2017)! Yet there are higher priced mascaras that you can buy in a department or specialty cosmetic store. Are these, higher priced mascaras better? Are they worth the extra cost? Mascaras last only six months; if you don’t use up the mascara in that time, you will just have to throw it out. What a waste of money!

Let’s make another comparison to help you make a choice: A trip to your local favorite coffee shop for a hot chocolate, vs. using a hot cocoa pod in a coffee maker at home.

Made at home: A leading home coffee machine sells its hot cocoa pods at $10.98 for 16 cups. Which is equal to $0.69 each. You get to choose the size of your cup of hot cocoa with the dials on your machine.

Hot cocoa in a coffee shop: The cost in one leading coffee shop, is $2.75 for a 12oz

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cup, $3.25 for a 16oz, and $3.45 for a 20 oz.

The question you have to ask yourself is: is the experience of ordering, picking up a cup at the counter with your name on it, and drinking it in the store worth the difference in price? Is walking around with a cup with a brand name on it a status symbol? Some days the answer may be yes, some days the answers may be no. But the important thing that you are making an informed choice. Knowledge is power! Once you understand how to manage your money through your own budget, you will have greater control over your financial future.

Keep yourself organized!

Load your gift cards in your phone. This keeps them from getting lost or forgotten when you are out with your friends. It also provides easy tracking. You will understand how many of your favorite drinks you get for your $25 gift card that you got as a holiday gift. Or, if you want to keep your gift cards, there are organizers that look like wallets that you can store the cards in one place. When heading out to the mall, just grab your gift card organizer with your cards all in one place!

It can be easier to keep track of your money by using an app, a debit card, or a pre-loaded store card rather than cash. You can also earn points towards discounts and free merchandise and get coupons mailed or emailed to you.

Check each app or website for age requirements.

If you don’t yet have a bank account, you can preload a store or bank card and use that.

If you don’t already have one, it’s a really good idea to set up a bank account. This will keep your money safe, make it less tempting to spend than if it is just lying around your room, and will earn you something called interest (the bank pays you a tiny amount of money each month you have money in the account, but this can grow over time.)

cardholder to transfer money electronically to another bank account when making a purchase. Check with your local bank to find out the age requirement for getting a debit card linked to your account. Debit cards only allow you to spend the money you have in your bank account.

One way to start understanding debit cards if you don’t have a bank account set up, is to use a pre-loaded debit card. The card is loaded when you buy it with an amount of money of your choice. As you use the pre-loaded debit card for purchases, the cost of each purchase is deducted until the value of the pre-loaded card is zero. You can practice using this new method of payment.

Debit cards

Credit cards

A debit card is a card issued by a bank which allows the

Credit cards are usually not available to upeople under 18.

Thoughts about the future...

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Hot cocoa at home, or from a store? Once you know the cost you can make the right decision for YOU!

According to Nerdwallet, “a credit card allows you to borrow money to buy things. There can be a cost to borrow that money (you might pay interest and fees), but you might earn rewards and build your credit”. Credit cards sound exciting because they can allow you to buy things before you have saved up the money. But beware, they have lots of pitfalls. It is much easier to get into financial trouble with credit cards because you may spend money that you can’t afford to repay. And, if not paid off properly, credit cards can negatively impact something called your credit rating. Why is your credit rating important? Because it affects your future purchases that rely on credit (borrowing), such as buying a house or a car.

You can only get a credit card if you are younger than 18 years old if your parents add you as an authorized user on their credit card.

They would be legally liable and responsible for the payments on purchases. Check your local bank for their own requirements.

And lastly, look to your own school to learn and hone your money skills. Perhaps you can volunteer to be the treasurer for an event or a club. In this role, you could be in charge of collecting, tracking, and spending money with adult supervision. Also, many high schools have a Personal Finance class you can take as an elective.

Consider taking it freshman year so you can get a jump on managing your own money for your future goals.

Remember that just like eating healthy, or getting good grades in school, financial intelligence takes time and effort. You can learn from mistakes along the way and search out experience and information to be the boss of your own money!

Apps and websites to learn from and organize yourself: www.handsonbanking.com/kids Offers an adventure for kids to engage in.

And you can choose to do this in English or in Spanish! www.threejars.com The website is so fun for parents and kids to use together. “Three Jars is built on the idea that kids can learn to manage money in an easy, useful and even fun way.” This includes tracking your earnings into Save, Spend and Share jars. www.TheMint.org A web site with a tab called “Fun for Kids” that has activities you can do such as the “Be Your Own Boss Challenge”. It is very interactive so you get pulled into the activity while learning about money.

The Quest to Clean Up app Helps you figure out if an item you want to purchase is really worth your effort.

You can create a wish list and also see how many chores you need to complete in order to earn an item that you are considering.

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LITTLE MISS FIX IT

ALL ABOUT KNOTS

BY MEGAN HINE Megan Hine is a survival expert and celebrity expedition leader who is widely known for her work alongside Bear Grylls on several TV shows including Mission Survive and Bear Grylls: Breaking Point. Megan also works behind the camera for TV shows all over the world and leads expeditions for private clients to some of the remotest places on earth. Ropes and knots are a big part of her life, and in this issue’s Little Miss Fix It, Megan talks to us about some of the most useful knots to know and the situations in which you might find them useful! For more information and to find out where Megan is in the world, follow her on Instagram @Megan_Hine For help tying these knots, check out the STRONG YouTube channel!

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FIGURE OF 8 LOOP Some of you may know this one already, but it is such a useful knot.

I love it because it is easy to see when it is tied incorrectly due to the shape being a figure of eight.

Uses: • For tying a rope to a climbing harness. Always check the manufacturer’s guidelines as to which part of the harness they recommend tying into.

• For tying anchors. For example, tying a rope around a tree to rappel from. I do find that this does become hard to undo with extended use.

SINGLE FISHERMAN’S KNOT Uses: • Fishing • Stopper knot for when you are tying a knot to attach onto a climbing harness; many climbers like to tie this as a stopper knot. It makes sure the safety knot they have used can’t slip and untie.

DOUBLE FISHERMAN’S KNOT As it says on the tin, this is a double version of the single fisherman’s knot.

Uses: • To tie two ropes together. If you were rappeling and your rope wasn’t long enough, this is a knot you could use to tie your ropes together, though you would have to carry out a technical move to get past the knot. Definitely practice on the ground before you put this into practice for real.

• Making a necklace without a clasp. This makes the cord able to alter length so you can put it on and tighten it to achieve the fit you want.

REEF KNOT

Right over left and under, left over right and under. This is a knot used by sailors for centuries.

Uses: • Tying ropes together when you don’t need what you’re tying to be super secure, easily undone.

• For tying bundles of firewood when collecting • Used for a multitude of purposes in sailing including ‘reefing’ the mainsail and tying up things aboard ship.

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THIEF’S KNOT

This is one of my favorite stories behind a knot. Like the reef knot this is also a knot that comes from sailors. At first glance, it is identical to the reef knot, however look closer and you will see that the ends of the knot are at opposite ends. Some sailors are said to have tied up their belongings with the thief’s knot. To the thief this looked like a reef knot and after having been through the sailor’s bag would re-tie with a reef. On return, the sailor could tell if someone had been through their bag.

BOWLINE

ALPINE BUTTERFLY

Uses: For tying up anything which may move. The working p of the line remains locked in place but it is still releasa • Tying up horses • Tying up boats • Tying up sled dog teams

HITCHING TIE

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Uses: • This is a knot that can be tied in the middle of a rope without needing access to the ends of the rope.

• Glacial travel, when hiking on the glacier when there is risk of falling into a crevasse, mountaineers will tie onto either end of the rope if there are two of them. If there are more than two they will tie an Alpine Butterfly around 15ft apart and, using a carabiner, attach to the rope.

• It is good for multi directional loading like rigging anchors where you use two points to attach the rope to, for example: to rappel.

ROUND TURN AND TWO HALF HITCHES One of my favorite knots as it’s so simple!

Uses: • For securing the end of the rope to a fixed object.

PARACHORD SURVIVAL BRACELET A great way to always have cord on hand. It is amazing how many things can be fixed or repaired with cord.

part able.

A simple knot which is easily releasable. I like this one as it’s easy to tie and release with mittens on when working in the Arctic.

Tying horses or a sled dog team. If the horse pulls one way the knot is tight; if you pull the other end it releases quickly.

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NAIA

some We asked us about irls to tell STRONG g te female their favori in characters ! re tu ra lite

MY LITERAR

My literary heroine is

Starr Carter from the book The Hate U Give. She is my literary heroine because she was not afraid to stand up for what was right. In the beginning of the story, Starr is more reserved in her courage and fearful of how others may react to her speaking up. However, as the story progresses, so does Starr, and she becomes more brave and confident to make sure to do the right things.

There are many times throughout the book when Starr shows her level of bravery. One way was when she made the choice to do an interview on television and give her account of the night that her childhood best friend was innocently shot by a policeman during a traffic stop. This decision was brave because she had known the consequences of speaking out against authorities; she could have been badly hurt or even killed. Another way Starr was brave was by deciding to stand up and speak at a riot. This was also a courageous decision because, again, she knew of the possible fatal consequences. Besides being assaulted by tear gas at the riot, a bigger consequence occurred after when King, the biggest drug dealer in her neighborhood, tried to burn down her father’s grocery store while Starr and Seven, Starr’s older half brother, were inside.

These were all some ways that Starr Carter from The Hate U Give was brave and courageous. She not only showed that she had courage, but that she and others didn’t have to use violence to stand up for the right thing. This character is not only a role model for me, but for many more girls around the world that get the chance to read this book.

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Have you ever read a book and just fallen in love with one of the characters? Maybe she or he is so richly written that you can feel their pain as they suffer, or their bravery as they face their fears? Maybe you can identify with them—perhaps you are the same religion as them, or you share some of their characteristics. Whatever your reason is, most of us have one character from a book we’ve read that we’ve really bonded with, that we look up to and admire. Who’s your literary heroine and what do you love about them?

EMMY

My l

intelli She is show One in sc othe She kind One Dea hel friends discover a Hermione quickly does this brilliant p does. Hermione G heroine because s

RY HEROINE Our favorite literary

MENA AND ZENA

heroine is Ms. Marvel. Ms. Marvel is a superhero in the Marvel Comics who’s real name is Kamala Khan. She is a Pakistani-American teenager who lives in Jersey City, New Jersey with her parents and brother.

After being affected by a mutation-causing substance, Kamala becomes a polymorph, or a human who can stretch, grow, shrink, and virtually change shape into anything. Kamala has to hide her powers from her parents while also learning to use them to solve crimes, save people, and be a hero. She takes on the name of her hero, Carol Danvers, whose superhero name is Captain Marvel.

After getting shot while trying to stop a robbery, Kamala realizes that she can get rid of any injury by simply shifting into a different shape. She becomes widely known throughout the city as a superhero but few people know her real identity. Kamala Khan is our favorite literary heroine because of her personality, actions, and moral compass. She is a funny and relatable teenager who grows up to become a responsible, strong young woman. Kamala is a good person and always tries to solve problems by causing the least amount of harm. She is the first Muslim character to be the lead in a Marvel comic and is a great example of positive representation and diversity in literature. She says, “We see it all around us more and more every day -- people with power punching down. That’s the world we’re inheriting, where violence does all the talking. We have to start enforcing justice without unjust force. Help us win the hard way - the right way - not with hate, not with retribution, but with wisdom and hope.”

literary heroine is Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Hermione is a caring, kind, courageous, and igent girl. I admire many things about Hermione, but the thing I admire most about her is how she is not afraid to be herself. s an amazing person, and doesn’t pretend to be someone that she is not. There have been many, many times when Hermione wed how caring, smart, and brave she is. example of Hermione showing these characteristics is in the first book of the series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. While chool, Hermione is known to be the brightest witch of her age. As smart as she is, she does not use this knowledge to harm ers. In fact, she uses her quick thinking and bravery to protect her best friends, Harry and Ron, when facing a troll in the castle. uses her knowledge to guide them through fighting the troll as well. When they are found by the professors, Hermione uses her dness and takes all of the blame for the previous events with the troll, though none of it was her fault. e more example of Hermione showing these shining characteristics is in the seventh book of the series, Harry Potter and the athly Hallows. In this book, Hermione uses her brain, her heart, and her courage to save the lives of Harry and Ron, and even lps some creatures along the way. When Hermione, Harry, and Ron break into a bank to find an important artifact, the three dragon used to protect the vaults in the bank. After finding what they needed, they had to find a way to escape the bank quickly. uses her knowledge to think of the plan to ride the dragon (I know it sounds crazy) out of the building and to safety. Not only plan save Harry, Ron, and herself, but it also rescues a dragon in need of help. Hermione shows her strength with everything she Granger is my role model and literary heroine. She is courageous, kind, and smart. Most of all, Hermione Granger is my literary she doesn’t pretend to be someone that she is not.

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My literary heroine is Liesel Meminger from The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak. Liesel is

BRADY

a strong individual and she doesn’t let anything that occurred in her past hold her back from accomplishing what some call “the impossible” in the future. She only continues to grow as a person and not change because of others. At the time the book is set in, (between 1939 and 1943), Hitler was the dictator and leader of Nazi Party, which led to the genocide known as the Holocaust. The Holocaust killed six million Jews and an additional five million others. Regardless of the many tragedies happening throughout the world at the time, Liesel had the opportunity to learn from others and express how she felt.

Despite Liesel’s tragic past, like the death of her brother and separation from her mother, she continues to make the most of her life. She goes to live with Hans and Rosa Hubermann at the age of 10. Unfortunately, she arrives unable to read and is made fun of. Throughout her stay she is taught to read by Hans during midnight lessons. She realizes that everyone’s life is in such chaos because of Hitler. She begins to understand that she is being forced to believe and treat others a certain way. Liesel can’t show compassion and empathy towards those in need. She and thousands of other kids have to join the Hitler Youth.

Around that time she befriends a Jewish man named Max who is hiding in her basement. She befriends him even though much of Germany is against Jewish people at that time. Liesel and Max turn out to have a lot in common. They bond and this makes her unafraid to share that she thinks Jews are good people and should be treated fairly. Words are more than small black figures that kids stare at all day. They’re also more than just the noise that comes out of your mouth. It’s up to you to find the right use for your words. Liesel did.

A second example of Liesel being her true self is when the people of her town are celebrating the Führer’s birthday. They light a bonfire during which enemy propaganda and books are burned. One book survives the fire and she keeps it. Ilsa Hermann catches a glimpse of her with the book and decides to share her love of books and library with Liesel. I can relate to this part of The Book Thief as my social studies teacher explained to my class one day that we shouldn’t be afraid to voice what we believe in in school, or in the world. Students are free to express without judgement. This makes learning easier and I’m no longer hesitant to share my opinions, even if I’m the only one who thinks that way.

This is an important message for all young women to hear because sometimes we don’t realize words contain considerable influence towards others if directed in a respectful manner. Also, be prepared to listen and be understanding about others’ statements. Holding yourself back from your true passions and beliefs can hurt. Liesel dares to be different and true to herself which I admire most about her. She does what she thinks is right and best for herself using good judgement and being respectful to others. I chose her as my literary heroine because I aspire to be like her.

One of my favorite literary heroines is Agatha from the series, “The School for

RIAN

Good and Evil” by Soman Chainani. The School for Good and Evil is a fantasy series about two schools, one for good people, one for bad. The fifteen-year-old students are chosen specifically to attend these schools to learn the ways of princes and princesses, witches and warlocks. They are then chosen to be in a story, which is sent all over the world for people to read, about how their life turned into a fairy tale.

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Agatha is my favorite character because she is misunderstood by her peers and must get to know herself. For example, she doesn’t know she is loyal and kind and will do anything for a friend because she listens to what her village says about her. The first impression that the reader gets of Agatha is her physical looks. “Her hideous dome of black hair looked like it was coated in oil. Her hulking black dress, [...] freakishly pale skin and jutting bones. Ladybug eyes bulged from her sunken face.” Agatha’s actions are also judged in the village. She lives alone with her mother in a house in the graveyard and is always moping around, wearing disheveled black clothing. But the change in Agatha throughout the story is amazing to witness, as she clarifies who

LUCY

from How to Rock Braces and Glasses, and How to Rock Best Friends and Frenemies by Meg Haston.

Description of character: Seventh grader Kacey Simon is a journalist for her school broadcasting network. Her part of it is Simon Says where she tells people what’s going on around the school campus. In the first book, How to Rock Braces and Glasses, her best friends don’t want to be friends with her anymore because she gets braces and glasses. So she has to become friends with her old elementary school friends, and they become best friends again. In the second book, she is still friends with her elementary school friend, Paige, but becomes friends with her popular school friends again. This causes problems because she kisses one of the girl’s boyfriends. Kacey also sings with a rock band, but only for a short time.

Why I admire her: Kacey is not afraid to tell people about her opinion, for example, if their shirt is ugly or if they have food in their teeth (I think that’s what makes her a good journalist!) She stands up for elementary school friends in front of her popular school friends when they try to interfere with Paige’s campaign for school president. And when her band needed her most, she wasn’t afraid to go up and sing with them.

she is. Specifically, Agatha realizes that some of the things she thought she wanted for herself were actually things she wanted for her best friend, Sophie.

She also realized that she wanted something that she didn’t even know she wanted, which illustrates some of her internal changes. These personal traits and priorities are important in the story as they influence her chances to be included in the published fairy tale. Agatha’s journey through good and evil is a hair-raising tale, fit for any reader ready for an adventure.

REGAN

My literary heroine is Kacey Simon

My literary heroine is Xiomara Batista the star of the

book The Poet X. Xiomara is a young Afro-Latina teenager growing up in modern day Harlem who faces difficulties in life.

Xiomara deals with not only feeling unheard at home, but not blending in, in her neighborhood. Ever since her body began to change and she developed womanly curves other students began to tease Xiomara with hurtful comments about her appearance, causing her to feel the need to defend herself from everybody.

Xiomara strength in the face of these issues makes her inspiring to me. She’s a character who overcomes the negative things people throw at her. One of the best things about Xiomara is her outstanding character, learning how to accept and express herself in the way that best fits her. Xiomara is witty, hardworking, and independent. Another great thing about The Poet X is its author Elizabeth Acevedo. Elizabeth is actually a slam poet herself with inspiring words that I have listened to repeatedly. Elizabeth’s story also covers a lot of topics, Xiomara—falls in love, questions religion, clashes with family, and calls out the issues with rape, culture, and sexism, while finding her voice in the harsh reality that we have to learn to thrive in.

Through Xiomara, Elizabeth Acevedo beautifully expresses the growing pains some of us feel. Xiomara grows into her own in this book, gaining awareness and acceptance of her mother’s flaws, the way she buys into the church’s sexism, and the rape and culture that affects her life and how people see her. As a whole, The Poet X is an important, moving novel that inspires people to not only be better and learn more, but also to accept and love themselves. Xiomara grows so much in this story, it’s impossible not to admire her.

These are some of the reasons why Xiomara has become a heroine to me. I look forward to reading more novels by Elizabeth Acevedo in the future.

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WHICH LITERARY HEROINE ARE YOU?

STRONG QUIZ

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Are you logical and fiercely loyal, like Hermione Granger, or determind to stand up for what’s right, like Matilda Wormwood? Take our quiz to find out which literary heroine you most resemble.

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2

A

A Logical B Feisty C Resourceful D Quick thinking E Stubborn F Smart

Who do you most like spending time with?

I have a couple of close male friends who I love spending time with. They really get me.

B I like to hang out with my brother.

C I love spending time with animals.

D I have a couple of close female friends I like to hang out with.

E I like my own company.

F I like the company of adults more than people my own age, and you can’t beat spending time with a good book!

Which of these adjectives best describes you?

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What would you do if you saw someone being bullied?

A Do everything in your power to

stop it happening right away, and maybe teach the bully a lesson at the same time.

B Fight that bully!

C Be determined to get the bully

back at first, but gradually realize that they themselves may be a victim of circumstance, and try to get to know and understand them better.

D Intervene and explain the conse-

quences of their actions to the bullies.

They’ll listen to you.

E Smash something over their head F Bullies want you to feel afraid. The key to defeating them is to think clearly and to stay calm, then beat them at their own game.

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What kind of people are your parents?

A Just regular, decent folk B They’re not afraid to stand up for

what they believe in, even if it’s unpopular.

B I like to make up stories about people I

the death to protect the people they love.

get out of my comfort zone.

C My parents would fight to D Mine are always solving

C I’m resourceful, I make things, and really D I like to have a really good think and try to puzzle through some of life’s problems.

mysteries.

E

but I’m good at making friends and looking after myself.

F Read.

E My parents aren’t around,

F My parents and I don’t get

along, they don’t really understand me.

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Do you like to be in the countryside?

A I do, but the wilderness

can be isolating and tough at times.

I don’t spend much time by myself, I can always find someone to go and talk to.

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What kind of clothes do you like to wear?

A Most of the time I like to dress in a very

practical way. Just occasionally, I like to wow!

B Pants, a tee shirt, boots. I don’t stay clean long and I like clothes I can feel comfortable with. I can’t stand dresses.

C I like to make my own clothes or recycle/ upcycle things.

treehouse.

D I have a pretty timeless look.

E I like to wear jumpers (pinafore dresses)

B I like being outside in my

C A tropical island is my idea

and boots.

of paradise.

F

D I prefer stately homes at the dead of night!

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E Yes, I love village life.

F Give me a library anyday!

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know.

What do you do at parties?

A My friends think they’re not my scene, but I get a kick out of turning up and surprising them by wearing a drop dead gorgeous dress.

B I’d rather play outside and get muddy.

C I get a bit overwhelmed by all the people.

D I love to people watch at parties and

figure out what’s going on in their lives.

E I like to do dares to show everyone how brave I am.

F I have some pretty cool party tricks I can show off.

I mainly wear my school uniform.

Which handy skill would you most like to have?

A The ability to go back and forward in time.

B The ability to create great stories about people.

C The ability to look after myself and survive in the wild.

D The ability to solve mysteries.

E The ability to charm people.

F The ability to move objects just using your mind.

10 you?

Which of these most applies to

A I’m fiercely loyal.

B I’m not afraid to question authority.

C I never feel sorry for myself, I just get on with the task in hand.

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D I’m independent and never question my

A Study.

F I’m brave.

What do you do when you’re by yourself?

own ability.

E I’m passionate, which means I can sometimes overreact.

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RESULTS RESULTS RESULTS 30

Mostly As

Hermione Granger

From the Harry Potter books by J K Rowling Loyal, brave, logical, blunt, and book smart. Hermione helps her two pals, Harry and Ron, as they battle the evil Lord Voldemort. At first, Ron and Harry view Hermione as a bossy know-it-all, but pretty soon they grow to realize that although yes, she is pretty assertive, that’s actually a really good thing, because she knows what she’s talking about! She’s is an awesome problem solver, who stays calm under pressure. Whenever there’s a tricky puzzle to solve, Hermione heads to the library and does some serious research to find the best way through. From solving Snape’s potions riddle, to figuring out that Lupin was a werewolf and why Dumbledore left Harry the sword of Griffindor. Hermione showed girls everywhere it’s cool to be smart and to be yourself.

Mostly Bs

Scout Finch

From To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee

She may be young, but plucky tomboy Scout Finch is a heroine we can all aspire to. She is smart beyond her years, unafraid to question authority, loyal, and always stands up for what she believes in. When her father, lawyer Atticus Finch, receives criticism for defending a black man accused of raping a white woman, Scout wants to fight for his honor. She’s happiest hanging out with her brother and getting into scrapes, she’ll beat up any boy that crosses her and she likes to swear “for the fun of it”. We’re not necessarily advocating doing those last two things, but it goes to show that no one was telling Scout what kind of girl she should or shouldn’t be!

Mostly Cs Karana (Won-a-palei) From Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell Karana’s story begins when her entire village is wiped out. The men are killed and the women are taken away. Those remaining hatch a plan to leave the island, but her brother misses the boat and is left behind. Karana swims back to the island to be with him. Tragedy strikes again and her brother is killed one day by wild dogs, leaving Karana to fend for herself on the island for 18 years!

Karana is resourceful, she has to figure out how to make weapons, tame wild dogs, build shelter, and generally look after herself on the dangerous island. She steps way out of her comfort zone and refuses to be beaten, all the while, remaining positive, refusing to feel sorry for herself, and even crafting herself some pretty awesome outfits out of feathers and animal skins. This is a girl who will not be beaten and who knows that she can do anything she sets her mind to.

Mostly Ds

Nancy Drew

From the Nancy Drew Mysteries Nancy Drew solves mysteries, often with the help of her two best friends, Bess Martin and George (Georgia) Faine. Drew is clever, independent, and brave. She’s also very accomplished and has a reputation for being a fantastic detective. She works hard and is ambitious—this is a girl who doesn’t let opportunities slip through her fingers!

Mostly Es Anne Shirley From Anne of Green Gables by E M Montgomery When Anne Shirley, an orphan, arrives in Avonlea, her guardians Matthew and Marilla aren’t too keen—after all, they wanted a boy to help out around the farm. But Anne is nothing if not charming, and she quickly wins over Matthew. She has a fiery spirit and imagination and a passion for goodness. Sometimes she can be a little hot headed, and can act out of passion and be stubborn, but on the flip side, she loves as passionately as she hates, which makes her a rich and very individual character.

Mostly Fs Matilda Wormwood From Matilda by Roald Dahl Matilda Wormwood is smart beyond her years.

Despite her parents showing no interest in her education (or indeed, in her at all), she learns to read at a very young age and has practically read the entire local library before she starts school. She is bullied from the day she’s born—by her parents, who wanted a boy and don’t understand her love of books, and by her school Principal, Miss Trunchbull.

Matilda is kind, brave, and confident in her own abilities. She’s also not afraid to stand up to bullies and she uses her special power, telekinesis, to help her overcome them!

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Even strength has to bow down to wisdom sometimes.

So this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I’m still trying to figure out how that could be.

- Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

“If you aren’t unhappy sometimes you don’t know how to be happy.”

I went looking for my dreams outside of myself and discovered it’s not what the world holds for you, it’s what you bring to it.

- Anne Shirley

Fear of a name only increases fear of a thing itself.

Having a friend made everything else suck less.

- Hermione Granger

- Laurie Halse Anderson The Impossible Knife of Memory

“Names are not important. It’s what lies inside of you that matters.”

- Sarah J. Maas, Throne of Glass

- Elphaba, Wicked

- The Perks of Being a Wallflower

- Annabeth Chase

I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.

Everyone deserves the chance to fly

- Madeleine L’Engle, A Wrinkle in Time

Sometimes you can do everything right and things will still go wrong. The key is to never stop doing right.

- Angie Thomas The Hate U Give

Sometimes people are beautiful not in looks, not in what they say, just in what they are.

The Book Thief

I’m the kind of girl who fantasizes about being trapped in a library overnight.

- Rainbow Rowell Fangirl

You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world. But you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices.

The Fault in Our Stars

“Eleanor was right.

She never looked nice.

She looked like art, and art wasn’t supposed to look nice; it was supposed to make you feel something.”

- Rainbow Rowell, Eleanor and Park

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“Don’t we all live in our heads? Where else could we possibly exist? Our brains are the universe.”

- Kate DiCamillo, Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion.

- Jane Bennett Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen

I have a feeling that once you live through something like this, you become a little bit invincible.

- Gayle Foreman If I Stay

Some walks you have to take alone - Katniss Everdeen, Mockingjay

“And endings are always the beginnings of something else.”

- Holly Goldberg Sloan, Counting by 7s

Brave doesn’t mean you’re not scared. It means you go on, even though you’re scared.

- Angie Thomas The Hate U Give

Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.

GREAT BOOK QUOTES

- Lady Galadriel The Lord of the rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

“She was elusive.

She was today. She was tomorrow.” ― Jerry Spinelli, Stargirl

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GROWING UP IN...

A MULTI CUL Hi Mayari, thanks so much for talking to STRONG. Can you introduce yourself?

Hi, I’m Mayari Gulati and I live in Rochester, Minnesota, with my mom, my dad, my younger brother and my two cats Pippy and Lexus. My dad is a cardiologist and my mom teaches pre-school. I’m in 9th grade, so I’m a freshman at the Mayo High School here in Rochester.

Tell us a little about Rochester Well, it’s a small town, and one of the biggest employers is the Mayo Clinic, a big hospital. For nine months of the year it’s freezing here—it got down to minus 60 degrees this winter—but for the other three months of the year it’s pretty warm! In the winter we get a LOT of snow.

Mayari showing some school spirit!

Every issue we like to talk to a girl who is growing up in a different country or culture. This spring, we talk to Mayari Gulati, a 14-year-old of mixed heritage growing up in Rochester, Minnesota.

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What are some of your hobbies?

I’m a figure skater so I spend a lot of my free time skating.

I’m in a synchronized skating team and we compete quite often and I also do single skating and take part in one or two competitions a year doing that too. I also play the piano.

And at school—what subjects do you enjoy studying?

I really enjoy studying English and I like History too.

Can you tell us about your heritage?

Yes, I was born here in Rochester so I’m American, but both of my parents were born in England, and both sets of my grandparents were born in India.

How important is your English culture to you?

It’s a significant part of my life. We celebrate many British

LTURAL HOUSEHOLD traditions and holidays. For example, in England, the day after Christmas, they celebrate Boxing day, and if we are in England we celebrate it too. We also love to celebrate Pancake Day, also known as Shrove Tuesday. We invite all our neighbors over and we’ll make English pancakes and eat them. We all try to flip them in the frying pan as well.

It’s fun and they get dropped on the floor sometimes!

What about your Indian heritage. Is that also a big part of your life?

Yes, my Indian culture is also very important to me. We celebrate the main holidays, so Diwali, the festival of light, in October/November, and Holi in March.

For Diwali we have a large Indian community here in Rochester and there’s always a big party that we go to and celebrate with the rest of the community. At home we will do a pooja, which is a ceremony where we pray to the gods, and we light candles with everyone to celebrate light. There are also fireworks and sparklers and it’s a lot of fun. Here in Rochester it’s not just the Indian families who celebrate Diwali, other community members celebrate with us too. Rochester is not a typical mid-west town. Having the large hospital here draws in people from all over the world, so it’s actually a really diverse, international community.

ers a bracelet made out of string that symbolizes a never ending bond. And then the brother will usually give the sister a present too. We celebrate Rakhi at home, not as a community. You can make the bracelets, but my grandmother usually sends them to us from England.

That sounds like a really special holiday, and Holi sounds like a lot of fun! Do you ever feel as though friends don’t understand your heritage?

Yeah. I do. A lot of my friends assume at first that I’m Hispanic, and then they’ll start talking to me about Hispanic culture and I have to tell them that I’m not. It doesn’t upset me though. I can understand why people would think that.

The holidays we celebrate are kind of spread throughout the year so my friends don’t really question those. The

Holi is the festival of colors. We go to the temple and after the pooja there is all this colored powder and we go outside and throw it at one another. It’s really colorful!

One more Indian holiday that we celebrate is Rakhi. It’s all about caring for your siblings. Sisters will get their brothMayari and her family celebrating Diwali

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one thing is that when they meet my parents they’re surprised that they’re British and always ask me why I don’t have a British accent, and I have to explain that it’s because I was born here!

Is the food you eat at home influenced by your heritage? Do you eat English chocolate?

We do! English chocolate is sooo much better than American chocolate! And we eat Indian food quite a lot.

We sometimes eat traditional English dishes like shepherd’s pie but not on a regular basis. I do love a “full English breakfast” though and I love to eat trifles and drink a drink called Ribena, which is a blackcurrant cordial you can add to water.

There’s this spread in England called Marmite that people put on bread or toast and it’s one of those things you either love or you hate. Lots of English people love it. I tried it once and I really didn’t like it!

Do you like to cook and are you learning to make any traditional dishes?

A little. My grandparents have taught me how to cook some Indian foods. But I’m not a big cook.

Mayari is a keen figure skater

Have you ever been to England or India?

We try to get home to see my grandparents once or

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twice a year in England and we often spend Christmas there with our extended family. I haven’t ever been to India, I would like to go, but it’s a very long way from America and also, now my great grandparents have passed, we only really have quite distant family living there. When I go to see my grandparents in England they teach us more about our Indian culture. When I was younger I used to do a pooja every morning with my grandparents.

What exactly do you do during a pooja?

It’s a Hindu ceremony. You light a candle, you give money and food to the gods, and you say a prayer. The Gods have names such as Krishna and Vishnu, but honestly, in my family at least, it’s more of a meditation type of prayer. It’s often early in the morning and it sets you up for the day.

You can do it in front of a kind of shrine, but you can also just do it anywhere.

So you talk about Hindu prayers, but in England, a predominantly Christian country, Christmas is a big deal, and you celebrate it?

Yes. We often visit England at Christmas time and we have a traditional English Christmas with turkey, Christmas pudding and Christmas crackers. I think Christmas is much bigger in the UK than it is here in the States because we have a big meal and a family gathering at Thanksgiving and they don’t have that in the UK, so Christmas is when they see all their family.

When we go back to England we see our whole extended family because that’s where everyone is, and Christmas is a time when everyone’s together. For us it’s a really important time of year because we live so far away. I have seven cousins in England and lots of aunts and uncles. We only have a week off school over winter break, but in the UK they have more than two weeks, so it’s always a really hectic trip home trying to squeeze in seeing everyone. But it’s fun!

I’d love to talk about traditional Indian dress. It’s always so colorful. Can you talk a little about it?

Well, for girls you can either wear a lenghi or a sari. Mainly women wear saris and girls my age wear lenghi. A lenghi is a skirt and top and a sari has a large piece of cloth, or a sash, that can be wrapped in different ways.

They are really bright colors. Traditionally, red is the wedding color and white symbolizes mourning, so it’s not worn very often.

I wear traditional Indian dress for holidays and special occasions. In India you would wear it more often, but not all the time.

Indian weddings are known for being very colorful, big, and long! Have you ever been to one?

I have been to two in England. In India they can go on for days and days and they’re really long. In the UK, they’re a bit shorter.

The day before the main ceremony they have the henna ceremony for the girls. The bride gets the mehndi put on and other people get it too. Mehndi is an ancient form of body art using a natural substance called henna. The henna ceremony is kind of like a bachelorette party!

The next day is the main pooja ceremony. In India they can go on for hours and hours, reciting prayers. In England it’s shorter, but still quite long! Then afterwards there’s a reception. In fact, Indian weddings are often so big that

Top: Indians celebrating Holi, Center: Mayari visting Castle Howard, England Bottom: An English trifle!

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There’s a stereotype that says that Indian parents are strict. Do you think there’s any truth in it?

I actually do think so with school standards and stuff! A lot of my friends who aren’t Indian don’t seem to have parents who care quite so much about their academics. But I don’t really notice that my parents are particularly strict about anything else.

Your parents and grandparents seem to work quite hard to make sure your various cultures are passed down to you. Do you think that’s important?

I do think it’s important to learn about these traditions and my heritage so I can pass that information down if I ever have a family of my own. It’s how my parents and their parents grew up and it helps me understand them too.

Having three different cultures in my heritage is a big part of who I am. They’re a huge part of my life. I go back to England every year, I celebrate with the Indian community here in Rochester. I would have a very different life if it wasn’t for my heritage.

We always ask people if there’s a book or a movie that they can recommend to give people a bit of an insight into their lives. Is there one that you can think of?

Mayari enjoys playing piano

there are two receptions. The bride’s family will hold one on the day of the pooja, and the groom’s family will hold one a few days later, that’s how they fit everyone in. It’s not uncommon for the bride and groom not to know everyone at their wedding. Indian weddings are really hosted by the parents of the couple and they invite all their friends. Weddings are all about being part of a big community and most people would expect to be invited.

Arranged marriages are also part of Indian culture, aren’t they?

In India, yes. Both my sets of grandparents had arranged marriages, and caste is still important too [a kind of social hierarchy], but my parents didn’t, and I don’t think my parents will mind who I date. I know I won’t mind at all what their heritage is.

Do you speak Hindi?

No, I don’t speak Hindi. My parents both can and my grandparents’ first language is Hindi. When my parents speak in Hindi to me I don’t understand!

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Well, to learn more about Indian culture you can watch Bollywood movies on streaming networks. You can watch them with subtitles and they’re great. My mum also suggested the movies Bend it Like Beckham and Bride and Prejudice, but I haven’t actually watched those!

Mayari, thanks so much for talking to us and telling us all about your life. Good luck in the skating competitions!

WHY DID SO MANY PEOPLE MIGRATE? Migration from India to Great Britain.

Mayari’s Family’s Story

(Told by her mom, Ruby)

Prior to gaining independence in 1947, India was a

British colony. People from India had been settling in Britain since the 18th century when the East India Company hired Indian lascars (a sailor or form of soldier) to replace their sailors. Often, these men weren’t given the option of a return voyage home, and therefore had no choice but to remain in England.

Indian women were also often employed as nannies for English families or married British officers in India and returned home with them.

The biggest migration of people from India to England happened after the Second World War. Having lost so many men during the conflict, Britain had a labor shortage, and passed legislation enabling easy migration from all Commonwealth countries (countries that were previously part of the British Empire).

Many Indian people who had worked on building railways in India were employed to rebuild the railways in Great Britain, and others were employed in the textile industry as laborers in factories.

In 1948, Great Britain’s National Health Service was created, offering free medical care to all citizens. Doctors were needed, and the British deliberately sought Indian doctors, as Britain had established medical schools in India which conformed to their standards whilst still in control of the country. Thus, many Indian doctors migrated to England in the 1950s and 1960s.

“So my Dad (Mayari’s maternal grandfather) moved to England because British education was considered the best. He went to medical school in Gwalior, India and then did his post graduate. My mom and dad both did their medical training in England and practiced as GP’s (General Practioners). They were the only two members of our family to emigrate to England.

Rajiv (Mayari’s father)’s dad and his siblings moved to England for business. Rajiv grew up around many aunts, uncles, and cousins! My family moved all over the UK with both parents completing their medical rotations. They settled in Nottingham, England, when I was about seven. Rajiv and I grew up in the same town but never knew each other until after we’d both been to university.

Rajiv was finishing up his medical training in the UK but wanted to experience a year long research position in the United States. We ended up staying three years and moved back to the UK when Mayari was just six weeks old. Little did we know we would be moving back in just 18 months! We moved back into our old house, went back to our jobs, and then the renowned Mayo Clinic invited Rajiv back to do a clinical fellowship. We moved back for a year and we are still here, 13 years on...!”

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THE ANCIENT ART OF MEHNDI 40

Sejal Shah is the owner of Trendy Henna in New Jersey. She

first started to learn the art of mehndi when she was in 4th grade. In 2008, she started work on a small scale, and by 2014 she had opened Trendy Henna. Today, Sejal works with a range of clients; from brides and their wedding parties, to pregnant women wanting their bellies decorated and cancer patients who choose to decorate their heads. Sejal visited us to teach us the art of mehndi and talk a little about the different forms that it takes.

Henna comes from a plant. The leaves are ground up to form a fine powder, and this powder is mixed with water to form a thick paste. The use of henna to decorate the body is thought to have originated in North Africa, before spreading to the Gulf, India, and Asia.

EILY

Sejal: “Mehndi is used in many places around the world to adorn your body as part of a celebration. So it can be used at baby showers, weddings, sweet sixteens, graduation parties.

Traditionally, the henna was applied to people’s hands and feet, but these days people want the designs all over their bodies.”

HENNA IN MOROCCO Moroccan henna designs tend to be more geometrical and bold, with fewer swirls.

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REGAN

INDIAN JEWELRY STYLE HENNA Before an Indian wedding, all females in the family and all their female guests will get henna.

There is usually a henna party two or three days before the wedding because the henna takes 2448 hours to darken.

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Sejal: “Getting an Indian bride ready for her wedding can take seven or eight hours as the intricate designs are drawn on her hands and up her arms, and on her feet and legs up to her knees.

For me, applying mehndi is meditative. I can do it for 15 hours straight. Often, if I am working on a henna party for a wedding I will do that.�

HENNA IN INDIA INDIAN FLORAL DESIGN HENNA

LYDIA

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HENNA FROM THE ARABIAN GULF Sejal: The Gulf style of mehndi is more floral than many other styles.

Also, whereas in Indian mehndi peacock and elephant designs are common, in Gulf style there are no living things, including no eyes. This is because in the muslim prayer, namaz, no living things are allowed.

LUCY

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Sejal: Sudanese henna styles are often bold and thick. Traditionally, the henna paste was mixed in a bowl and sticks or twigs were used to apply it.

Sometimes, dough would be placed on the hand and the henna would be applied where there were spaces.

In contrast, in Morocco, syringes are often used to apply henna.

DAISY

HENNA FROM SUDAN

After henna designs are created, they are often sprayed with lemon and rose water to help them stay on the skin longer.

Once the paste dries it will gradually crack and fall off the skin, leaving behind a bright orange stain. Then the henna oxidizes and after 24-48 hours it becomes brown.

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FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT

This weekend, I saw the movie ​On the

OLIVIA

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Basis of Sex​with my family. Going into the movie, I knew the basics about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I knew that she was one of only nine females in her Harvard Law School class of over 500 total students, and that she was only the second female justice to be confirmed to the Supreme Court. I knew that she was an inspiration for girls everywhere and had broken through countless glass ceilings to get to where she is now. This movie, however, made me realize just how much she’d done before she became a Supreme Court Justice to advance gender equality. While at law school, Ruth Bader Ginsburg faced gender inequality from peers all the way to the dean of the school. She was made to feel as if she wasn’t supposed to be there, as if she was taking a place at the school which could’ve gone to a man. Remember, this was in the late 1950’s. During these years, her husband, who was a year ahead of her in law school, battled cancer while they both took care of their baby. After graduating at the top of her class, Ginsburg, despite being in New York City—considered then and now to be a progressive area—couldn’t get a job at a law firm because of her gender. Ruth Bader Ginsburg battled through these obstacles and so many more while trying to change the world, sometimes sacrificing time with her family to do what’s right. After watching this movie, I can say without a doubt that Ruth Bader Ginsburg is one of my heroes, and I urge everyone to see this movie.

I give this movie 5 stars!

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WHAT’S EVERYBODY READING?

REGAN

The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas, stars a young teenager, Starr Carter, constantly switching between two worlds, her poor predominantly black neighborhood and the rich, mostly white, prep school she attends. The unstable balance between her two worlds is shattered when she witnesses the death of her childhood bestfriend Khalil. When justice is not being served, Starr is pressured to say what really happened that night and avenge Khalil or stay silent and protect her family and herself. Starr needs to discover her voice and fight for what’s right: to protest against police brutality and make a change in the world. This is an amazing novel, quite advanced, and yet easy to comprehend. I recommend this book to children over the age of 13. The movie based on this book came out last fall of 2018. I have not yet seen the movie but I look forward to viewing it soon.

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SPRING BUCKET LIST 50 FUN THINGS TO DO THIS SPRING

1 Stash your winter gear away for another year 2 Stroke or hold a baby animal 3 Get your legs out again!

4 Get outside for a hike 5 Plant some seeds so you’ll have homegrown veggies come summer 6 Get your camera out and take photos of the first spring flowers 7 Mow the lawn 8 Go for a run 9 Get on your bike!

10 Lie under a cherry tree and admire the beautiful blossoms 11 Find a playground and swing on the swings 12 Smell the green stuff that’s growing all around you!

13 Plant (hardy) flowers in window boxes 14 Throw open your windows and get some fresh air.

15 Spring clean your closet 16 Close your eyes and feel the sun on your face 17 Get your flip flops ready for some warm weather action 18 Visit a zoo 19 Plan a spring picnic with friends 20 The birds are back— listen to them singing!

21 Listen to spring’s frog chorus 22 Eat delicious fresh veggies 23 Cloud gaze with your BFF 24 Buy fresh flowers to brighten up your home 25 Play frisbee 26 Make a wish on a dandelion clock

27 Work on your badminton skills 28 Draw on your driveway with sidewalk chalk 29 Wash the family car 30 Hang a wind chime 31 Take a day trip to your nearest city 32 Sit outside at a cafe 33 Make a spring themed playlist 34 Buy yourself some new sunglasses 35 Take part in a neighborhood spring clean 36 Meditate in the park 37 Feed the ducks 38 Grab a sketchbook and head outside 39 Get up early and watch the sunrise 40 Fly a kite 41 Grab your rain boots and jump in some puddles 42 Take a spontaneous road trip 43 Walk barefoot 44 Re-read your favorite book sitting outside in the sunshine 45 Get caught in a spring shower 46 Start a journal 47 Master a fantastic green smoothie recipe 48 Get your toenails painted 49 Line dry your laundry—it’s good for the environment and it smells so good!

50 Invite your friends over for a spring tea party

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An interview with Madeline Keane

THE WORLD AT HER FEET 50

This Spring, STRONG caught up with Madeline Keane, a 25-yearold professional soccer player who played for teams throughout Europe before returning to the US.

Hi Madeline, thanks so much for talking to us at STRONG and telling us about your soccer career. Where have you been playing most recently?

I actually just finished my season in Iceland. I have played in Iceland twice and Italy once. My most recent team was called UMF Grindavik in the Icelandic premier league. For Grindavik I played as both center mid and center defense. At the moment, this team is out of season!

How old were you when you first played soccer?

I first started playing soccer with my dad from the moment I could walk! Although I don’t remember my first game or time touching a ball, I had definitely found my calling. My dad, Phil Keane, played keeper back in high school and college. He was my inspiration to play in college and eventually to play professionally.

How old were you when you started playing for a team?

Starting at age five, I played for the Newtown, CT, rec team, then the Newtown travel team, and then premier soccer at age 11. I played center mid and center back throughout high school for both my high school and premier teams. I played other sports as well (basketball, lacrosse, and very briefly, track), but I decided to focus on soccer to better my chances of playing in college.

My high school coach was a man called Marc Kenney (he was also my English and Film Studies teacher). I was fortunate to play with an incredible team. Our senior class was comprised of a full starting 11. But in one of the first games of the season, I ended up getting a concussion that took me out for the majority of the rest of season. Following that year though, I had a great learning experience in terms of how to play with and for a team that became family. I grew the most as a member of a team during those years working under Marc. The high school season took place during autumn each year, while my premier season lasted throughout the rest of the year. It was with the premier team that I developed my technical skills and game awareness.

My coach, Jorge DeSousa, was extremely intense and his training sessions were grueling— in addition to the homework he set to study players and teams. While working with him in individual sessions and on the field as a team, I developed the skills I needed to stand out on the field. Unfortunately, he nicknamed me “twinkle toes” because he said I danced with the ball! Both of the teams I played with during high school allowed me to become a well-rounded player and able to play at the college level.

“Playing at this level and with such talented teammates brought out another side of me. A determination that I did not know I had until that point.”

You played soccer at college too?

Yes. Following high school, I played mostly center mid at Wesleyan University in the NESCAC (New England Small College Athletic Conference), under head coach Eva Meredith. Each year, I played with incredibly driven players who had different skills and assets, a few of whom also played other sports at the collegiate level. Playing at this level and with such talented teammates brought out another side of me. A de-

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Playing with Catania

termination that I did not know I had until that point. I had never experienced so many games that involved overtime and double overtime as I did at Wes. These games brought our team even closer together and forced each of us to play for each other.

How did you make the transition to playing pro soccer?

Initially, after graduation, I had a job at the Philip Johnson Glass House in New Canaan, CT. Then I worked at a venture capital firm in Manhattan, and finally out in Westchester opening an elementary school called Hudson Lab School. While I was helping finishing up some of the final stages leading to the school’s opening, Chris McCullum reached out to me. He’d seen me play when I was training with Tiffany Weimer, a player currently with the Washington Spirit. He asked if I was still playing—and, fortunately I was still playing five to six nights a week in the city. From there, I sent my recruitment video to a team called Tindastóll in Sauðárkrókur, Iceland. Four days later, I was on a flight for a trial with the team! Fortunately, I made the squad and played my first game with them three days later.

Because of the insular nature of the European soccer world, other teams are able to hear about players through word of mouth (not to discredit an agent’s role at this point—they deal with all of the logistics, facilitating the relationship with teams while the player is in season with another team, bargaining, paperwork, etc.). Through word of mouth and the help of my agent, I wound up with Catania Calcio Femminile, in Catania, Sicilia, Italy. With this team, we played all throughout Italy, from mid September through early May. Following playing for this team, I went

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Madeline playing with Tindastoll

back to Iceland to play for a team called UMF Grindavik, in Grindavik, Iceland.

What different teams has each club you’ve played at had?

Each team that I’ve played for has had at least one men’s and one women’s team at the professional level, as well as lower level teams that acted as feeder teams, and younger teams for a variety of ages.

“Women in the US and Europe face a lot of the same prejudices and obstacles that discourage playing a sport at the professional level.”

Soccer is a very popular sport among females in the US, did you find that that was the case elsewhere in the world?

My experience is that there are a greater number of younger, female players in the US, especially at the high school and collegiate level, than elsewhere. However, a few of my teammates came from different cities in England, each with their own story that lead to them playing professionally. Two of them came to the US to play college soccer and then back abroad to play professionally. According to them, to get to the professional level, in England it’s perceived that it’s best to play collegiate soccer in the US, as the level of play is so high.

Women in the US and Europe face a lot of the same prejudices and obstacles that discourage playing a sport at the professional level. However, strong female role models in

Playing with Catania

their lives, a desire for a higher education, and a love for the game all helped push them to keep playing.

Was there a point at which you knew for definite that you wanted to play soccer professionally?

I grew up wanting to play professionally and I was always confident that I could make it, but I knew it would be a process that required a lot of hard work.

At what point exactly though did you realize that this was actually something you were really good at and could do professionally?

I realized that my dream was a possibility during my time at Wesleyan when I started training with Tiffany Weimer.

The sessions consisted of four or five other aspiring players and a few of Tiffany’s friends/teammates.

Who has helped you along the way?

Aside from the coaches and agent that I mentioned above, my parents, siblings, and my best friends, Clayton and Kiley were extremely supportive. During the time just before I left to play abroad, I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to play at the next level. But after talking with my family and friends, a lot of my anxiety subsided and I was able to pick up my life and move to a country I had never been without anyone I knew.

So brave. Who do you look up to and admire?

My parents have both been great role models for me. They both work so hard and have always done everything for me and my siblings. Professionally, I have always looked up to Kristine Lilly. She grew up in Wilton, CT, only about

30 minutes away from my hometown. While she was still a player there, she became a team member of the US women’s national team. She acted as a great inspiration and showed me that playing professionally was a real option for me.

What is it like to live and work in another country, especially at such a relatively young age?

I was definitely scared before I left, since I was taking a big risk leaving my job and moving to play a sport in another country. But the friends I made along the way made the experience well worth it. After my first week in Iceland, I realized I had made a life long friend, Lavinia Nkomo. She is from Southampton, England, and played college soccer at Barre University in Florida. She then came with me to Sicily. We still talk at least once a week! Additionally, I became fluent in Italian during the 10 months I was there (after having also studied it at Wes). Another point of growth for me was coaching young Sicilian boys (ages 4-5) who did not speak any English, as well as starting an English tutoring program to help locals learn to speak English. Most of the locals did not know any words aside from “hello” and “goodbye”.

Was it a scary decision to put your “regular” career on hold to pursue a sport?

Even though I initially started out following a more traditional career path, I was definitely terrified that I would be complicating the possibility of finding employment once I decided to stop playing soccer. However, I have found that having the experience of playing pro soccer on my resume impresses and interests people, and it’s been the com-

53

plete opposite of a hindrance to finding work after playing soccer!

I think maybe the lesson there is that you should follow your heart, and that things have a way of working out.

Have you had many injuries to contend with? How have they impacted you?

Yes. I have had quite a few injuries along the way. The biggest was a fractured jaw and two chipped molars from taking a forehead to the side of my face. The other injuries were fairly typical, such as sprains.

Ouch, that doesn’t sound like fun at all! What about diet, as a pro soccer player, did you have to eat a special diet?

Nope! The teams supplied food. But it was a fairly normal diet in Iceland. In Italy, we ate more pizza than I normally ever would have—but it was delicious!

A question about equality in sport; do you feel that women are equal to men in soccer, and sport generally?

At this point in time, women are definitely not treated equally in terms of pay and other benefits, but there is a great movement that is bridging the pay gap between genders. Iceland is a great example because the baseline payment must now be the same for both men and women.

That’s very interesting. I hope more countries follow their lead. Have you come across much sexist behavior as a pro player?

I have experienced a great deal of misogynistic behavior and attitudes while playing abroad as well as in the US. In Italy in particular, La Sicilia wrote a feature on me, but the majority of the questions were focused around if I was dating anyone in Italy, what I thought of the Italian men, why I was playing professional soccer if I was straight...etc.

There is a stereotype that most of the women’s professional soccer players are gay. Another unnecessary stereotype.

Yes. It’s hard to imagine them asking similar questions of male players.

What was a typical “day in the life” for you when you were playing in Iceland and Italy?

When I was in Italy, I met with sponsors on a regular basis and was even in a couple of commercials and ads!

So great. I know during your time abroad you also coached younger players, how was that experience?

I learned a much greater level of patience, but also learned that I love teaching. It’s my greatest passion! I think it is so important to have every type of educator be passionate about what they are teaching. While teaching in a classroom and on a soccer field are clearly different, they are both extremely influential positions to be in. I know that from my own experiences.

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Madeline signing her contract to play for Grindavik, Iceland

What’s next for Madeline Keane?

At this point, I plan to pursue getting my master’s in teaching while (hopefully!) working with children with developmental and social disorders.

I would definitely consider playing professional soccer again, but only if it’s stateside. While my time abroad was amazing, I feel I’ve met my desire to play professionally abroad.

I am not done with soccer by any means, but I was ready to be back home, and I also needed a break from playing due to my injuries.

“From going abroad and playing professional

soccer, I felt like I was truly going out on my own and forging my future with every action that I took.”

So interesting that you realized you had a passion for teaching through your soccer coaching! What do you think were the key things that you got out of your time playing in Iceland and Italy?

From going abroad and playing professional soccer, I felt

like I was truly going out on my own and forging my future with every action that I took. I have always been a very independent person, but this experience made me feel like I was really accomplishing something big on my own merit. In saying that, I am not disregarding or forgetting all of the support that helped me get there.

I just truly felt accomplished and content with reaching my goal. Had I not taken advantage of this opportunity, I wouldn’t have met some truly incredible people, visited the diverse and beautiful places along the way, or been able to live in cultures so completely different than what I was used to.

It sounds like an incredible experience. What advice do you have for girls reading this who would like to follow your career path and play pro soccer?

My biggest piece of advice is to be open to the idea that you can do the things you might be most scared of.

Hopefully without coming across too cheesy! Don’t hold yourself back because you are scared to fail or scared for others to see you fail. The only person that ultimately could have held me back was myself. While I was lucky to have the support of my parents, it did not stop many people from questioning my decisions. But I trusted my own abilities and leaned on the support system I had around me.

Madeline, thank you so much for taking time to talk to STRONG about your soccer career. Good luck with your masters and we’ll look forward to seeing you play pro in the US again soon!

FEMALE SOCCER FACTS

• In 1921 in England, just as women had won the right to vote, they were banned by the FA (Football Association) from playing “football” (the English name for soccer) on the grounds that it was “unsuitable for females”. The ban was not lifted until 1971!

• Although things are gradually changing, men who play professional soccer are still paid a LOT more than women. During the 2014 FIFA World Cup, players in the men’s teams who were eliminated in the first round collected a cool $8 million. The winners of the women’s world cup team were only awarded $2 million apiece.

• The women’s World Cup was held for the first time in 1991 in China and is held every four years. This year it will be hosted by France.

• The World cup has been won three times by the US team, twice by Germany, once by Norway, and once by Japan.

• The US National team is the most successful in international women’s soccer. In addition to their three World Cup wins, they have won Olympic gold on four occasions.

• More than 80,000 people went to Wembley stadium to watch the final of the women’s soccer tournament in the London Olympics in 2012 when the USA beat Japan 2-1. A record attendance!

• American player, Mia Hamm, has more goals in international play than any other woman.

• In Brazil, a country where the sport is huge, women were banned from playing football (soccer) from 1941 -1979 because it (and other sports) were thought to be “incompatible with their nature”.

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YOUR PLANET, YOUR FUTURE

THE ART OF CO

STRONG’s Heather Priest isn’t just a chef and a food science educator, she is also a driving force behind the zero waste initiative in Wilton, CT, the town where she lives and works. Working with the Wilton Zero Waste Schools team, Heather has brought new waste solutions to her district’s schools. Each lunchtime, students from kindergarten to 12th grade are encouraged to sort their waste into items that can be reused (these are put into a fridge so that other students may eat them, and leftovers are donated to the local food pantry), those that can be recycled, and those that can be composted. The aim is to achieve zero waste going into landfill. As one of the leaders of this scheme, and someone who is passionate about our planet, we couldn’t think of anyone better to speak to about the importance of 56

composting! We caught up with Heather and her daughters, Maryn and Ady to find out more.

Hi Heather, can you tell us, what exactly is composting?

That is an interesting question. “Composting” the word is used interchangeably for a lot of different applications. It is used as a term for food scraps we collect in our kitchens and a term for the soil like mixture that we add into our gardens. It can be very confusing to consumers. Here is how I see it breaking down: The term compost can be used for the pile of food scraps that you collect and add to your leaf and yard scraps for your backyard garden. It is used when we talk about municipal food scrap collection that goes to plants or facilities for high heat processing or anaerobic digesting. This is what our school district does.

2-3 times carbon to nitrogen-based materials in order for decomposition to properly occur. You will hear professional compost facilities or farmers referring to the decomposition process as “cooking” the compost. Essentially, the process of decomposition creates heat which helps to further the breakdown of the materials as well as kill harmful bacteria.

A third way that people use the term composting is in the phrase vermicomposting. This is the process of using specific types of worms to add to your food scraps that then breakdown the food and produce worm castings or excrement that can then be used as fertilizer.

Composting is also used as a verb for the act of collecting food scraps.

Technically, all of them are right, but unless you know how it is being used it can be mindnumbing!

There have to be around 2-3 times carbon to nitrogen based materials in order for decomposition to properly occur.

OMPOSTING Farmers use it as a term for all of the different scraps they have from the farming process such as plant waste, manure, leaves, and hay, as well as grass clippings that are collected on a farm. They, in turn, wait for this mixture to break down and then add it to their soil to improve the fertility.

Either way, to turn food scraps into “compost” that is considered fertilizer for growing new vegetables, it must decompose fully. This means that there needs to be a certain ratio of carbon and nitrogen-based products as well as adequate oxygen and moisture. Carbon, or “browns” as they are sometimes called, being items such as wood chips, dead leaves, and hay. Nitrogen-based products, or “greens”, are things such as fruit and vegetable scraps, grass clippings, plant debris. There have to be around

What can be composted?

The answer to this question depends on the facility and/ or method you are using to break down your food waste.

Many home composters only compost fruit and vegetable scraps due to the concern that meat/dairy/fat based products will attract animals. In addition, home composters do not have enough volume to maintain a high heat during the decomposition process and therefore run the risk of harboring unsafe bacteria if meat and dairy are added.

The other forms of compost which are higher volume, sometimes referred to high heat aerobic composting, can maintain higher heat and kill these bacteria. There are also compost facilities that use use microbes (anaerobic digesters) to break down the food and can take any type of food scraps including meat and dairy.

So sometimes even meat be composted?

If you use the proper method any food scrap can be composted! What I do in the garden at school can not use meat or dairy products though, for the reasons I mentioned before.

Here’s something a lot of people ask: most of our veg-

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gie scraps are biodegradable anyway; why can’t we just throw them away with the trash? Why is it a problem if this waste ends up in landfill?

Unfortunately, when nitrogen-based materials such as food scraps are piled in with other garbage which usually includes items such as plastics, metals, fabrics, etc., it does not get the level of carbon and oxygen needed to decompose properly.

As a result, methane gas is created during the decomposition process, which is a noted greenhouse gas and is contributing to global warming. In many states they are switching to incinerators rather than landfills, which some people think is a great solution; however, this requires energy to run and produces carbon dioxide gas, which can also contribute to global warming.

So, it really is best for the planet to compost as much as we can. What do you need to start composting at home?

Composting at home does not need to be expensive. For instance, I keep a small bucket under my counter and then have a pile of dead leaves in my backyard that I add my food scraps to. However, some people are worried about vermin such as rats or other rodents, which in that case you can get a barrel composter and mix your browns and greens in that. These composters can vary, based on size, from $50 to $500. If you are handy there are also ways to build a backyard composter out of wooden pallets. You can find these pallets pretty much anywhere. They are

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used as a base for companies to ship boxes and are available at many commercial businesses, just ask. These can be drilled together and lined with chicken wire. You can add a lid, or leave it open depending on your needs. Just make sure you have adequate brown materials to add to your compost. By springtime you could take your compost out and add it to your garden. Any pieces of food that aren’t broken down can be sifted out and added back into the barrel.

If you have a bucket or countertop compost bin, does it start to smell?

There are new products in the market that cost a little more and help provide some relief, but if you are processing your compost on your counter you must make sure you are adding browns, or it will start to smell. If the adequate level of nitrogen and carbon is being maintained it really shouldn’t smell much at all.

Some people worry that having compost bins and food scraps outside might encourage wild animals. What can be done to stop them?

If you are concerned about animals you can get an enclosed composter or fence in your compost. In addition, there are emerging businesses that collect household food scraps on a weekly basis similar to your carting company’s weekly garbage and recycling pick up. For a small fee they provide you with a clean tote every week and pick up your food scraps.

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What are some of the different methods/products for composting?

I think it really comes down to how much work you want to put into it. I find the open pallet composter the easiest to maintain because I can easily add dead leaves to it and mix it with a pitchfork. It is also easier to get the compost out when I want to add it to the garden. The barrel composters are good for keeping out animals but I find that they may not get enough oxygen and moisture because of the enclosed nature, slowing down the decomposition process. Therefore you have to add water and check a lot.

It is the safest, most environmentally friendly, and least expensive way to fertilize. Farmers, especially organic farmers, swear by compost. The reason compost is so great is that it releases nutrients slowly over time vs. all at once like many store bought fertilizers. It also contains many microbes and other organisms that help the soil flourish. Store bought fertilizers can not offer that type of versatility. Lastly, compost benefits the actual soil structure, making the soil better able to hold moisture and create adequate space for root systems to spread and reach nutrients throughout the soil system.

Vermicomposters are great if you want to have pet worms, but they can get a little out of hand. Those little guys like to procreate! Also, you can’t add a ton of worms to your soil, they have to be sifted out of the finished compost.

Too many worms, believe it or not, can be a bad thing.

They can start to devore the root systems of the plants.

It seems as though there are some pretty solid reason why we should all be composting. Thanks so much for all the info Heather!

Can people compost grass cuttings?

Yes, you can absolutely compost grass cuttings, but they count as nitrogen-based materials, so you need to make sure you have enough dead leaves or other “browns” to add to the compost.

Once you’ve created compost, what can you use it for?

Compost can be used to fertilize any flower or vegetable garden. However, there are compost facilities that are capturing the power of decomposing food waste and using it to create natural gas that then powers different electrical grids. Check out quantumbiopower.com Wow. That sounds incredible. I love the idea of our food waste creating power! Going back to growing food, is it better for the environment to use compost instead of store bought fertilizer, and is it actually as good for growing things?

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THINGS YOU CAN COMPOST AT HOME GREEN

BROWN

FRUIT AND VEG SCRAPS

CRUSHED EGG SHELLS

COFFEE GROUNDS

COFFEE FILTERS

LOOSE LEAF TEA

TEA BAGS

SPOILED SOY, ALMOND, SHREDDED UNWAXED RICE, OR COCONUT MILK CARDBOARD PIZZA BOXES COOKED PASTA

STALE BREAD

RICE

NUT SHELLS

AVOCADO PITS

SHREDDED USED PAPER NAPKINS, BAGS AND PLATES (UNWAXED)

ALONE WE CAN DO SO LITTLE TOGETHER WE CAN DO SO MUCH JOIN THE STRONG GIRL MOVEMENT TODAY! SUBSCRIBE AT STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS.COM FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM AND FACEBOOK: STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS SUBMIT ARTICLES AND REVIEWS: STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS.COM/JUSTFORGIRLS

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STRONG MIND

MIND FULL,

OR MINDFUL?

BY STRONG’S CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER, JILLIAN DESIDERIO

You likely experience stress in your life. Stress can

come from many different places: school, home, family, friends. Stress is a part of life. Although stress is a part of life, it is important to find ways to cope with stress so that you are still able to be successful and function.

A great way to cope with stress is to practice mindfulness. A simple way to define mindfulness is to say that it is a way to “calm your mind.” When you are feeling stressed it can be hard to make decisions, 62

which could lead to feeling overwhelmed and stuck.

Practicing mindfulness is a way to slow yourself down.

As you slow down, your brain becomes more calm and therefore better able to make decisions. Mindfulness allows you to “BE PRESENT.” It is quite incredible how much simply slowing down and being present can help change your mood for the better.

“It is quite incredible how much simply slowing down and being present can help change your mood for the better.”

Mindfulness can also help when you aren’t feeling well, but are not actually physically sick. Let me explain...sometimes you might feel like you are sick, but those “sick” feelings are actually a result of uncomfortable emotions you are experiencing. A perfect example of this is when you may have a stomach ache or butterflies in your stomach before taking a test. If you slow yourself down in that moment and be mindful, you can check in with your body. This will

allow you to acknowledge that your “sick” feelings are actually “worried” feelings. Once you realize that, you can use mindfulness to calm yourself down and hopefully feel better.

In school, a lot of students make visits to the nurse saying they are sick, but if they paused and were mindful, they might be able to understand more quickly that it isn’t a physical sickness. Once you understand it’s your emotions, you can then use coping skills to feel better, such as deep breathing or positive self talk.

HOW TO BE MINDFUL The best way to learn how to be mindful is to practice. As with anything new, it may feel strange at first to consciously slow yourself down and “calm your mind.” With practice though, it will start to feel natural and you will be able to use mindfulness in your daily life!

close attention to how you feel. Be in tune with your body. Understanding the difference between muscle tension and muscle relaxation will help you develop an awareness of physical manifestations of your feelings.

• FOCUS ON YOU. If you are feeling particular-

ly intense emotions towards someone else, don’t focus on them. Concentrate on you and what you can actually do rather than focusing on what/who is the cause of your feelings.

• IMAGINE YOUR HAPPY PLACE. I am

sure you have heard of this before, Simply think of a place where you feel happy and safe and imagine yourself there. After a few minutes, slowly bring yourself back to reality and remember the calm feeling you had thinking of your happy place.

Leave the happy place in your mind but take the feeling of calm with you.

Here are some ideas for you to practice being mindful:

• UNPLUG. Stay off of technology, (phone,

computer, TV, social media…), for at least one day! Although you may feel uncomfortable being “disconnected” at first, being unplugged from technology is one of the best things you can do to be mindful.

• DO A FULL BODY SCAN. Sit in a quiet

space and relax your body. Concentrate on every part of your body from the top of your head to the tip of your toes. Relax each body part and pay

• BREATHE. This is the single most simple AND

effective way of practicing mindfulness. Slow down and breathe. Concentrate on slowly inhaling and exhaling. Feel the calm spread throughout your body and mind as you take each breath.

As you begin your path to being mindful: believe in yourself, trust yourself and know yourself. You can do this and you will be happier once you find the peace that comes with being mindful.

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JOIN THE STRONG GIRL MOVEMENT TODAY! SUBSCRIBE AT STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS.COM FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM AND FACEBOOK: STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS SUBMIT ARTICLES AND REVIEWS: STRONGMAGAZINEFORGIRLS.COM/JUSTFORGIRLS