Everyday Joy

Meet my dog, Lili

Is she cute? Her name is Lili, the Chinese spelling of the Lily flower and an easy word for my grandparents to pronounce. The first thing I do when I come home from school is play with Lili and sit beside her. Spending time with her always helps me relax and unwind

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Another thing that helps me unwind is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Training keeps me grounded. It’s where I can clear my mind, focus on technique, and challenge myself both physically and mentally. Even after a long day, stepping onto the mat always resets my energy and reminds me how much I enjoy learning and improving, one roll at a time.

When I can, I almost training every day there. I love learning with my teammates and from my coaches, Seth and Professor Wadley.

Pokémon cards Collection

I also love collecting Pokémon cards. Every once in a while, I trade cards with my neighbors and friends, and I enjoy competing against them with a deck of my less valuable cards. While I do care about the value of my cards, when trading and collecting, I often prefer the ones that are most visually appealing to me.

Every once in a while, I also stop by my local supermarket to grab a mystery box to test my luck. There’s something exciting about not knowing which cards I'll get. Collecting and playing Pokémon is a mix of surprise, strategy, and nostalgia that never gets old.

Painting the Spirit, Not the Surface

I enjoy painting in every form: acrylic, oil, colored pencil, watercolor, and digital art. Each one feels like a different language for expressing ideas. Recently, I’ve been especially drawn to Chinese ink wash painting, which uses expressive brushwork, flowing ink gradations, and intentional empty space to capture the inner spirit of a subject. Instead of focusing on realism, it values poetic suggestions and emotion.

I love experimenting with how expressive brushstrokes can make each piece feel alive. Whether I’m holding a brush, stylus, or pencil, I’m always chasing that perfect balance between innovation and creativity.

My Closet, My Canvas

I’m passionate about fashion and design, and I love bringing ideas to life in different ways. Sometimes I spend hours on Procreate, designing graphics for T-shirts, accessories, or wall art. Other times, I go old-school, painting directly onto my clothes by hand. My sweatshirts, jeans, and jackets often become my favorite canvases, each one telling a slightly different story.

For me, fashion is more than what you wear. It is a reflection of creativity, identity, and individuality. It doesn’t matter if I’m sketching digitally or painting with a brush. I love turning something ordinary into something that feels uniquely mine.

Creativity That Sticks

Making stickers has become one of my favorite hobbies. I love turning my art into tiny, colorful designs that make people smile. My favorite animals, such as capybaras, pandas, and dragons, are often my muses. The chubby panda and capybara remind me of my younger self: soft, curious, and always going where nature takes me. The dragon feels like me now: strong, driven, and full of energy. Together, they’ve become my little artistic mascots.

Every school year, my friends ask, “Do you have new stickers?” They decorate their laptops, mugs, and notebooks with them for a fresh start, and seeing my art travel everywhere makes me happy. For me, these little stickers are more than just designs. They are small pieces of joy. I love the feeling of opening my laptop or carrying my sticker-covered mug and knowing I made them myself. It’s creativity that sticks, both with me and with everyone who enjoys them.

On the Move

I love to travel, exploring new cities testing different foods, and collecting little cultural treasures from gift shops along the way. Honestly, who doesn’t love a good trip?

Every other year before the COVID-19 pandemic, I visited my family in Shanghai, where the energy of the city always inspires me. I’ve also traveled to other parts of China, as well as Japan, Korea, Canada. Japan gave me some of my favorite memories. There were beautiful streets, kind people, and food so good I still think about it.

In the U.S., I love New York for its creativity, California for its sunshine, and Pennsylvania for its charm and calm.

No matter where I go, I always come back with new ideas... and maybe a few too many snacks and souvenirs.

Winter Fun

I love skiing. There’s nothing quite like speeding down a mountain with freezing wind on my face and realizing halfway down that I might be going a little too fast. Whether it’s my first smooth run of the day or an epic wipeout in the snow, I always end up laughing. Skiing reminds me that falling is just part of the fun and sometimes the best way to learn balance.

J.Y. Tong