Author: Francesca Ramos

Raising Pets During the Quarantine

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Raising Pets During the Quarantine

By Seojoo Lee ‘21

“My dog really helps bring me some happiness when I am really sad. He is a bundle of energy and love.” – Julia Poole ‘22
(Photo contributed by Julia Poole ‘22)

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many outdoor activities and trips have been restricted. People are having difficulties raising pets, but, at the same time, quarantine days allow the pet and its owner to become closer. Being with pets obviously makes people a lot happier than being at home alone. Julia Poole ‘22 and her dog Lex walk every day, which was more often than before the COVID-19 crisis. Julia stated, “Trying to plan when to buy Lex’s food is difficult these days because we cannot leave the house that much, but the good part of these days is Lex has been getting a lot more exercise with me.” As Julia said, possibly the greatest part about the COVID-19 crisis is staying out of busy life for a while and spending a lot more time with the pets.

“My dogs are my everything. They are so cute and funny. They make me smile.”
– Ava Smith ‘21
(Photo contributed by Ava Smith ’21)

Pearl, Magnus, and Nina are Ava Smith’s ‘21 dogs. Ava is more than happy to spend more time with her three dogs these days, for she explains, “I think right now is a great time for pets because everyone is home so much more than before.” As Ava said, for pets, right now is a good chance to be with their owners. If you have pets, now is a great time to be with them and share your days.

“My dog is one of my best friends.” – Christophe Beluse ‘21
(Photo contributed by Christophe Beluse ‘21)

Due to the COVID-19, meeting up with friends is not normal anymore. Just as we met with friends to have a great time, dogs also need their time to play with their friends. Christophe Beluse ‘21 has a dog named Balou. Christophe said, “I go out for a walk with Balou, and throw him a ball just like before the coronavirus occurred. I think it is not too difficult to raise my dog during this situation, because I can train him in my yard. However, the only bad thing is that he cannot play with other dogs.” 

In these days with full of uncertainty, people might be too depressed. On the other hand, what about making our lives more positive than just staying unhappy? Spend your time with your pets; that will definitely make your life more colorful and bring some more smiles on your face.

Sem Hosts Annual International Dinner

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Students pose for a picture while serving food at the event, which was held in the Carpenter Athletic Center.
(Photo contributed by Yifei Liu ‘21)

Sem Hosts Annual International Dinner

Seojoo Lee ‘21

On January 11th, Wyoming Seminary held one of its annual International Club events, the International Dinner. As one of the most significant events at Sem, the International Dinner features international students from 17 countries cooking their own traditional food to represent their country. For example, Germany prepared “Kaiserschmarrn,” also known as scrambled pancakes, which was one of the most popular foods at the dinner. In addition to Germany, several other countries, including Israel, South Korea, China, Spain, Canada, and Puerto Rico served their cultural foods. 

The International dinner was not only an excellent opportunity to share other countries’ foods and cultures, but it was also provided a rare opportunity for domestic students and boarders to try foods from other countries. One of the local boarders, Emily Urbanski ’20, said, “I really enjoyed [the] International Dinner because it is one of the events during the year where everyone can participate. Everyone can go and try the food, and you really get to experience the culture yourself.” 

The International dinner allowed international students and American students to communicate and bond over great food. It is events like the International Dinner that help Sem to showcase its cultural diversity and bring together boarders, day students, and faculty for a carefully planned and well-received event.

MUN: What a Time To Be Alive

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MUN: What a Time To Be Alive

By Isabelle Polgar ‘21

The United Nations: in the real world, it is a careful place, working in national sovereignty and economic stability to make incremental changes to our world. So far this year, our Model United Nations Club had to deal with bringing our nation out of the Great Depression and using smart industrial solutions similar to the “New Deal.” 

Improving upon the actual United Nations, however, it had creative twists, like one delegate pushing for the legalization of all drugs for economic stimulation and an invasion of Germany ten years before World War II. However, this past winter, a new simulation occurred: a crisis! The Hong Kong protests are entangled with complex issues surrounding many groups around the world and at Sem. As one head delegate, Jess Kishbaugh stated, “We picked the Hong Kong protests for our winter simulation because it was really relevant at the time, and it combined a lot of people’s interests. We incorporated not just internationalism with members of the Hong Kong, U.S., and the Chinese government, but we also used basketball players to add another layer to it.” Delegates enjoyed the simulation, which had constant crisis updates like the double kidnapping of Carrie Lim (represented by Alvin Tuo) and the brutal murder of both protest leaders (represented by Isabelle Polgar and Max Liu). The U.S. government also had a significant role, with Donald Trump (represented by Max Krous and Amin Ali) giving the Hong Kong protesters a billion dollars in exchange for renaming Hong Kong “Trump Town.” 

Delegates learned and had a lot of fun. A portion of them was chosen to attend the highly acclaimed “Ivy League United Nations Conference” held annually by the University of Pennsylvania. Delegates came from six different continents and from committees such as Facebook, Brexit, and the Congress of Vienna. While there wasn’t as much murder at UPenn as in Sem’s practice simulation, delegates still had a lot of fun and learned a lot about present and historical foreign affairs. One delegate, Matt Kuloszewski ‘21, stated, “Our committee was tasked with solving the Israel Palestine conflict. Our chairs warned us that it was a very sensitive issue and that the Actual U.N. hasn’t been able to solve it in decades. Even though we put great effort into our working papers, every single resolution proposed failed. It taught me, though, that the issues of our world are often complex and multifaceted, requiring long-lasting cooperation among all parties involved.” Attendees also got delicious meals at the Reading Terminal Market and lots of boba tea. In fact, Nikka Gohrieshi set a Sem record for Boba consumption at a Model U.N. conference. Every delegate learned something new about the world and themselves while having a fun weekend meeting people from around the world.