For those of you who don’t know Alice Zhang well (that is to say, beyond the fact that she is one-half of the renowned Zhang twins), here is a summary of everything I’ve learned about her over the past six years: 1) She’s terribly afraid of heights, 2) She loves boba, and 3) She likes to get her work done quickly. So, if you want to be her friend, just don’t take her to Six Flags, don’t try to buy her coffee and don’t keep her waiting. But if you do step on one of these fatal mistakes, don’t worry! After all, I must admit to having made all three, but I still have the luck of being friends with the single, most amazing person that has graced Boston Latin School with her presence over its 386 years of history.

Sometimes I wonder how exactly Alice and I became friends so quickly. In some ways, we are quite the opposite of each other: she is a master of efficiency, while I am quite a master of procrastination. (After all, here I am, writing this spotlight an hour after it was due…) Yet, somehow, it worked out. After the first week or two of sixie shyness, we became inseparable, and I can’t imagine how my six years at this school would have been without the ray of sunshine that Alisi embodies, not just for me but for every single one of her many many friends. Wherever she goes, daring adventure and carefree laughter follow.

Aside from being bubbly and hilarious and the best giver-of-hugs, Alice is undoubtedly the most hardworking individual I have ever encountered. She can achieve anything as long as she puts her mind to it, which is why you can find her a member of Fencing, the Argo, Math Team, Science Team, Dance Club and Diabolo Club — what a mouthful! — and not only is she a part of these extracurriculars, she is loved in all of them. That is what makes her unbelievable.

Alice, Diabolo Club may have started because of me, but it has become what it is today because of you. Thank you for persistently urging me to sign up for Asian Night tryouts in eighth grade, the place where it all really started. Thank you for always being the first to start working on the next performance choreo and for your indefinite enthusiasm and ambition for the team. In my mind, Chinese yo-yo and Alice Zhang are two things that cannot exist without the other. You truly are the heart of our little yo-yo family.

Thank you, Alisi, my adorable potato, for being my best pengyou over the last six years. The truth is, I left this spotlight to the very last minute because I didn’t know how to show what an incredible person you are within such a small space, and now I know for sure that it is impossible. I guess it all just comes down to this: thank you for being you.