Student Spotlight: Mackenzie Jenkins

Student+Spotlight%3A+Mackenzie+Jenkins

Carley Cunneen, Staff writer

Passionate.  This is one word I’m sure most people would use to describe Mackenzie Jenkins. She has identified her love for yoga and photography at an early age, and focused her energies into perfecting both crafts.

Yoga was first introduced into Mackenzie’s life at a very young age and she has connected with it ever since. She recently became a certified yoga instructor, and her years of practice have led her to securing a job in Hawaii this summer on a retreat farm. In Hawaii, she will be teaching yoga and also “farming vegetables and fruits and caring for animals.”

Yoga has served as a healing mechanism that helped bring Mackenzie back into the present moment. Last year, Mackenzie had to endure losing her cousin who she had a strong connection with.  Unquestionably, this has had a lasting effect and yoga has been a good escape in the grieving process. About her cousin, Mackenzie shared, “You realize how impermanent life is and how fast it can go. You have to cherish it, struggles can be a good thing.” It’s admirable how Mackenzie can redirect a negative situation into something beneficial.

Friends of Mackenzie see her in the same light. Senior Cassidy Canberg describes Mackenzie as, “Fairy. She’s both delicate yet hard and driven with her motives. Overall she has good intentions and I think that contrast reflects a perfect balance, like a fairy.”

Similarly,  Avery Solomon said, “Mackenzie is free. She just does what she wants.  She’s a free spirit.”

People have drawn these conclusions through the way her style and personality is expressed through art. Cassidy admires her photography for its fresh and unique style, yet still having a classic vibe at the same time. As someone who shares the same passion for art, Cassidy told me that Mackenzie inspires her to analyze pieces in order to understand the whole meaning.

Growing up without parents has been a big obstacle for Mackenzie, but she is grateful that her grandparents are always there for her. Through all of the difficult times, Mackenzie still remains a bubbly, lively presence. She lives by the words,  “Cherish each day, make sure your grateful that you can take a breath each morning and do the things a lot of people aren’t able to do. Have gratitude of all of the things we can have.”