Amanda and Elaine Dai are sisters and competitive rhythmic gymnasts who train at Rhythmic Dreams in Newton, Massachusetts. "Rhythmic Diaries" is their account of balancing training and competing in this rigorous sport with being normal high school students.

How can I compete today? I wonder pessimistically as my legs wobble...

This is what people -- more specifically, political junkies -- have been waiting for ever since the 2008 election ended. The United States cannot and will not accept a lame, dry and dull election season. With $3 billion(!) going into this election, two campaigns slamming each other and...

Diana Greymountain, 16, is a member of the Girl Scouts of Arizona Cactus-Pine Council.

Tomorrow, I'll be visiting the White House. I've never been to Washington, D.C., so it's very exciting. I'm going to the White House because I'm a Girl Scout and...

The Volvo Ocean Race is currently in its final stages, as teams make their way back across the Atlantic to Portugal, the the third-to-last stopover in this edition of the race. Since November of last year, six boats have been racing around the world in a 39,000 nautical-mile competition that...

I had the opportunity to attend the premier of the new movie BULLY in Indianapolis alongside the film's director, Lee Hirsch, earlier this week in advance of my big race in the "Night Before the 500."

When I sat down to write what I wanted to share about the...

His team may be out of the NBA playoffs, but the fact remains that Dirk Nowitzki -- power forward for the Dallas Mavericks -- is one of the most talented and overpowering players of this generation. Yet his complete unselfishness and overall niceness has gotten in the way of him...

"But you are from Joplin. So you will remember, you will know, just how many people there are who see life differently; those who are guided by kindness and generosity and quiet service." -President Obama

I heard these words from President Obama during Joplin High School's graduation...

Hero. Many of us fail to recognize that we can all be heroes. We hear stories of extraordinary people doing extraordinary things and we often fail to make the connection that each and every one of us has that same potential. Look inside of yourself. Look around you. What you...

So you've finished AP exams, handed in a 10-page English profile and discovered how to incorporate graphics and audio into a Java applet. But even though junior year is winding down, life seems busier than ever.

It's three days before Regionals. With one training left and a handful of...

'Sister, Sister' is a recurring column about the adventures of real-life sisters Allison (17) and Natalie (15) from Kansas City, Missouri. You can also find them on DartNewsOnline.com, their official high school newspaper.

Movies are something that everyone can relate to. Whether you're at the theatre or curled...

Nine years ago when I was 10, when I was not separated from my family or moving from city to city, I remember going behind dumpsters and grabbing cardboard boxes because that was my bed. I recall being covered under my mother's jacket to stay as warm as possible. My...

Let's cut to the chase. When I saw the front page of the Huffington Post on Monday, May 21, 2012 while engaging in my daily perusal of the site, I was outraged. First of all, I'm a practicing Catholic, so I'm no stranger to the inner workings of the Catholic...

I won't bore you with details of the Invisible Children's campaign to bring an end to Joseph Kony's reign of terror. The most viral video in the history of viral videos, the 30-minute-long "KONY 2012" has garnered approximately 90 million views and counting, and if you're reading this on the...

It's amazing what you can gain from lying. In the worst cases, lying can get you in jail, or lose you a few friends. But done the right way, lying can mislead an entire country -- and maybe even get you elected president.

Sure enough, Mitt Romney and the Republican...

Asking the majority of people the question of what is the world's biggest industry leads to pretty generic answers. Most will guess energy, the Internet or healthcare as the number-one industry. Yet the number-one industry is government. An industry that has control over all other industries, it can force customers...

U.S. Representative Gabby Giffords from Arizona addressed a local audience in Tucson in January 2011 and took a bullet in the brain from a deranged gunman. He has not spoken publicly about why he did it and we may never know for certain. But keep this in mind: Congresswoman Gifford...

Once upon a time, in a realm of Chanel frocks and McQueen masterpieces, there dwelt a coterie of style stargazers with an affinity for all wonders fashion. United by the euphoric marriage of fashion and technology, these bloggers have become the curators of fashion through their blogs, ranging from personal...

As a St. John's University student and a Korean-American, it is automatically assumed that I am a pharmacy student mainly due to my ethnicity. I normally don't get offended about certain jokes, but I have to admit that sometimes I do get offended when, after hearing I'm from St. John's,...

John Mayer is back and ready to redeem himself. Mayer knows he's talented. We can all agree on that. But what sets Born and Raised apart from John Mayer's other works is that he's finally humble to his talent. In this record, Mayer is genuinely regretful for his past arrogance...

Ten steps. That's probably about how long it would take most of us in America to find the nearest faucet. However, millions of women and children begin their daily trek with a 10,000-mile walk to the nearest source of clean water. In fact, 7 billion humans vie for...