INTRODUCTION

Hello there dear viewer! Welcome to my About Me page, and I hope you enjoy it!

For starters, my name is Jovan Yu, my pronouns are he/him, and I am a grade 9 student at Terry Fox Secondary School.

I was born and raised in Hong Kong, where my family also came from. I have basic understanding of Mandarin, I can communicate in Cantonese, and I can speak fluent English.

I enjoy learning, discovering, and trying new things. My hobbies and interests include swimming, biking, badminton, writing, geography, drawing, chess, and playing the piano!

THE FOUR PILLARS

At Terry Fox, we follow the principles of the four pillars, perseverance, kindness/compassion, integrity, and leadership.

     Perseverance – persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.

     Kindness/Compassion – the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate / sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.

     Integrity – the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness.

     Leadership – ability of an individual or a group of people to influence and guide followers or members of an organization, society or team.

From these four pillars, I feel that perseverance is the most meaningful to me because perseverance helps me push through challenges and obstacles and reach my. goals! Perseverance also gives me growth and valuable learning experiences with dealing with failure and setbacks, and it enables me reflect, adapt, and improve!

THE PERSON WHO REPRESENTS PERSEVERANCE

     The person who I feel represents the pillar of perseverance best to me is Ludwig Van Beethoven. Ludwig Van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist who is considered to be one of the greatest in Western music history.

     I feel that he represents the pillar of perseverance because he faced many immense challenges and obstacles in his life such as deafness, personal struggles, unstable family relationships, and financial instabilities. He even faced criticism for his compositions for breaking away from traditional forms and conventions. Despite his hardships, he continued to persevere and create more lasting and impactful compositions that have inspired countless musicians.

Here is a wonderful video that describes Beethoven’s life, career, music, and legacy.

A MEANINGFUL WEBSITE TO ME

     Ted.com is a website that I commonly use to explore different perspectives, expand my understanding of countless topics, gather inspiration and ideas, and connect with others across various communities. It is meaningful to me because it is a place to fulfil my growing curiosity, think critically and creatively, be aware of many important global challenges and issues, and regulate my mental health and personal growth.

PILLARS IN ACTION

When reflecting on the pillars, I can recall many times when I demonstrated the pillar of perseverance in my everyday life.

Perseverance

     One time, I faced significant challenges and obstacles when learning a complex composition on the piano. I was irritated and frustrated by my slow progression compared to other pieces I had learned in the past. My frustrations grew when I set an unrealistic goal to try to master it by the end of the day. Soon, I realized that rushing it through was not the answer.

     So, I decided to take a break from learning and focused on reviewing various techniques and practicing different sight-reading pieces. When returning to the composition, I had made a breakthrough and I started to understand the composition and gradually learned to play it correctly. This experience has taught be me two important lessons: practice makes perfect, and patience is key.