International Tutors' Magazine April 2019 | Page 4

INTERNATIONAL TUTORS’ MAGAZINE Dear Readers, Welcome to the April issue of the IT Magazine 2018-2019. It’s almost the end of the academic year, and the season of exams, final projects, graduation, job hunting and generally thinking about the future is upon us. Some of us feel lucky to be following our dreams and living our best lives. Some of us are struggling to find our sense of purpose and aren’t sure what to do next. Happiness can be a complicated issue for many people. There are things that make us happy and things that make us unhappy. Life gets in the way, and sometimes we find it too difficult to do those things that bring us joy and stop those habits that bring us unhappiness. Sometimes we get the perfect opportunity to chase our wildest dreams, and sometimes we’re pressured to turn away from our passions to “more practical things”. Some of us might not even know what our ultimate happiness looks like, and might feel lost without direction. This issue is all about pursuing happiness. In the following pieces, students share with you their own unique ideas about what this enormous topic means. Kimberly Wong tackles the loneliness epidemic in the age of social media and gives advice on how to find happiness in yourself in “The Pursuit of Happiness”. Cyrus Lau investigates the relationship between self-confidence and athletic success in an interview piece with fellow EdUHK student athletes. On the other side of things, Charlene Lee’s creative story, “The Fountain Pen”, explores what happens when someone can no longer pursue their own dreams. The Magazine is also excited to showcase the winning pieces and honorable mentions from the CLE Creative Writing Contest 2018-19. The theme of this year’s contest was, fittingly enough, “Dreams and Reality”. Many submissions interpreted this theme in a way that followed our own pursuit of happiness, but even those pieces about alternative realities seem to resonate with the rest of the issue. Happiness is so central to human reality; deep unhappiness and a true sense of unreality can often feel the same. Happiness is unique to each one of us, and can change throughout our lives. Take a look here at what happiness means to some of us, and then go out and pursue your own. Sincerely, Noga Zaborowski Editor EDITOR’S NOTE 4