I wanted to share with you all a very special experience I had recently!

I just came back from the White House and let me just say AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!! Starting Thursday morning and ending Friday night, those were some of the most fantastic 48 hours of my life!

On Thursday morning, my mom woke me up at 6 AM. Obviously, I was very upset. My school didn’t start till 8:20, so why did she wake me up so early? Nevertheless, she exclaimed that it was something I would want to see and put her laptop in my lap. Her email was open. The subject said: “INVITATION: White House Movie Screening.” This itself made my stomach start doing somersaults. As I kept reading, my eyes doubled in size and I started emitting high-pitch squeals. I WAS INVITED BY THE PRESIDENT AND FIRST LADY TO WATCH THE NEW STAR WARS MOVIE IN THE WHITE HOUSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn’t believe it!

That school day was a blur of excitement and as soon as I shoved open my front door when I came home, my parents announced that I was leaving that night to go to D.C.! I started jumping around with joy and ran into my room to start packing.

When my aunt Triveni (from Virginia) drove me up to the White House entrance the next day around 3:40. I was still having trouble believing that this was really happening. I told the Secret Service Officer outside the gate that I was here for the movie screening and waited for him to ask me what I was talking about and tell me that there was no movie. Instead, he smiled and led me to the right place to check in. At that point, my brain was exploding. I no longer have any adjectives to describe my excitement when I found out that I was one of the 26 total invitees….. Perhaps spontaneous combustion? Molecular bombardment? Nope. Still not expressing the magnitude of excitement explosions I was going through. :):D

As we started walking into the White House, I saw its complete transformation for Christmas, with all its festive decorations. I was happy to meet the other guests. I talked to Sereia, an adorable seven year old, Milennia, a 16-year old who was super sweet and smiling, and Hazel, who was extremely kind and patient. I also met Nikhil, who was a Broadcom MASTER one year before me (in 2014) and went to the White House Science Fair in 2015. I talked to them, and many more, in a room in the White House for quite a while.

Afterwards, the White House staff led us to another room- the Diplomat Reception Room. This is the room that any foreign official would be greeted in, like Queen Elizabeth, for example. In the WHSF in April, we had lunch in this room. The officials then announced that “Two people are going to be here… make some room….”

After a few minutes of waiting and listening to the private helicopter landing outside, a very familiar voice- one that you’ve probably heard in some speech or the other- boomed through a door in the back of the room and everyone became instantly silent and gasped with excitement. Now we knew who the two people were! President Obama and Michelle Obama walked through the door, followed by three people dressed up as Darth Vader and two Stormtroopers from Star Wars. This was the first time that I met the First Lady! Having heard and read so much about how Michelle Obama does so much to help kids around the world, I was absolutely delighted to be in her presence! She spoke to us so nicely! And I couldn’t be more blessed to get an opportunity to meet with the President again! The President gave a really charismatic and hilarious speech – I wish I could have recorded it! We took group pictures. After spending some time with us, the President and First Lady left the room and went straight to their helicopter to fly to Air Force One and leave for Hawaii.

Then, you ask, where did we go next? To the White House’s PRIVATE THEATER!!!!!!! We got popcorn and cookies on the way and then went to the theater to watch Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. When we got settled in the theater, multiple surprises walked through the door. The directors, producer, and writer of Rogue One, as well as the ONE AND ONLY LUKE SKYWALKER (actor Mark Hamill). This time, people literally gasped aloud and nearly screamed. Being the humorous actor that he is, Mr. Hamill told us that he was most honored and excited to have met the most powerful man in the universe, Darth Vader. And then he said that there was that other guy photobombing the picture — what was his name again? — President Obama!:) It was an amazing honor to watch the movie with them!

After the movie, which was FANTASTIC, everyone went outside and got some Star Wars merchandise, including a T-shirt, notebook, and poster. Mr. Hamill was graciously willing to stay back and take pictures/selfies with us as well as autograph our posters. He was AMAZING!!!

At the end of this once-in-a-lifetime event, I walked outside with a White House staff member to my aunt’s car, shivering in the 19 degree D.C. weather but still grinning. That was one of the most unique, spectacular events I have encountered, and probably ever will. This has been my best holiday gift ever! I will forever thank our 44th president for the opportunities he has provided me and many other children all around the country!

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This past November, I had the opportunity to attend NAGC’s Annual Convention in Phoenix, Arizona. Although the primary purpose of my trip was to learn more about the changing and ever-growing landscape of gifted education, I also had the privilege of listening to and meeting some amazing presenters and influential professionals in the field of gifted education.

One of the keynote speakers at the convention left a lasting impression on me and served as the inspiration for this blogpost. He was not only the youngest presenter at the convention, but he also seemed to embody what it truly means to be gifted and talented.

He introduced himself as Joey Hudy, a 17 year old student at Arizona State University and an active member of the Maker community. From a young age, he was fascinated with making things out of household materials and immersed himself in DIY engineering projects which lead to some great inventions, like his marshmallow launcher which he presented to President Obama at the White House.

His simple philosophy, “Don’t be bored…Make something!” further propelled him to create more amazing gadgets like his SMD Arduino Shield,  3x3x3 LED Cube Arduino Shield , and a prototype “smart” glasses which run by reading human thoughts. It was not surprising to also discover that he is currently the youngest intern in Intel’s New Devices Group product development program. I sat in amazement as Joey presented eloquently and knowledgeably about his experience and growth as a maker. Needless to say, I left Joey’s presentation feeling revitalized and inspired to delve into some DIY projects of my own.

The future definitely seems a little brighter with gifted and imaginative young people like Joey. There’s no doubt that Joey, and other young innovators like him, will pave the way for some ground-breaking technologies in the near future. If you want to know what Joey is making today, head over to his personal blog.

So what are you waiting for? Pull up your sleeves and get your creative juices flowing. Maker labs are popping up in cities nationwide. These labs serve as creative workspaces where makers of all ages and skill level can innovate, learn, design, and build things. They provide access to the necessary tools, resources, and equipment so you can bring some of your brilliant ideas to life! Check out some of the maker labs in Los Angeles County:

• LA Maker Space
• HexLab 
• Urban Workshop
• Vocademy (closed in 2020)

If making things isn’t quite your forte, you can still get a unique glimpse of some remarkable projects and get involved in the maker movement by attending a Maker Faire . Think of these family-friendly festivals as a cross between a county fair and science fair with a sprinkle of innovation. Hundreds of makers from all walks of life showcase and hold live demonstrations for their incredible creations. Maker enthusiasts, educators, students, tinkerers, hobbyists and people of all ages come out to participate in hands-on activities, meet the brilliant makers behind these one of a kind designs, and learn new skills.Here are a few resources to help kick start your next project:

• Goldie Blox
• Maker Shed
• Seeed Studio
• Adafruit