“Spring has the busiest days.” The recital for Columbia Gorge Dance Academy is just around the corner, and track season has begun! Starting her day waking up and catching a ride to school, she thinks about her busy day ahead. After school she has track until 5 pm then heads straight to the dance studio. With her multiple dance classes and well deserved spot in the company, she dances until 9 pm. When she is back home, dinner and a shower followed by homework that has to come before finally being able to sleep. The next day she does it all again. “I do get flustered. But at some point, I keep myself so busy that I don’t have time to get flustered.”

Waking up at 7 and going to bed at 11 is pretty normal for high school students, but having a day so busy that you barely have time to stop and breath, that’s intense. Between company dance, kayaking, track, skiing and a 4.0 GPA, Isabel Lira’s day is bursting at the seams. “I have mastered the skill of time management,” she states. With her busy schedule it makes sense and she always seems to have time for fun.

On weekends she catches up on homework and with her friends. She loves skiing and when the weather is right and the water is high she kayaks– how adventurous! Her friends and peers think of her as, “Talented, loud, funny, smart, down to earth, vibrant, creative, spontaneous, organized, and very chill.” Izzy’s puts forth an open mind and great personality. She comments “I’d like to live an exotic life.”

Izzy says her biggest struggle is Ballet, but if you have ever seen her dance she is absolutely amazing. Her close friend and fellow company dancer Elizabeth Bricker agrees and says, “She’s very, very good at ballet while not boastful, arrogant, or cocky in anyway.” Dance is a huge part of Izzy’s life, as she spends 5 out of 7 days at the studio taking eight or nine classes a week. Izzy works incredibly hard and has accomplished much in dance, including getting into company as a freshman.

Although Izzy is very humble, people recognize how smart she is. She is in honors classes and pre calculus. She says math is challenging, but she keeps working hard to keep a strong 4.0 GPA. In school she is involved with clubs including YOHO, Global Citizens, and she is the representative for GSA. Through Global Citizens she is getting the opportunity to go to Europe for 10 days. “I’m really looking forward to traveling the world with some of my closest friends and getting to witness a culture that I’ve heard so much about.”

In the spotlight of the stage, and the middle lane in track, Isabel Lira shines bright. She is admired and looked up to. “She’s a little fun ball of humility and joy,” Elizabeth Bricker kindly states. Never boastful, we all could learn a bit from Izzy. She adds positivity to everything she does. Living a busy life is what she does, and knowing how to manage everything is a true art. Simple and honest she states, “I don’t have time to get flustered, besides it’s just simply a state of mind.”

By: Alivea Harsanyi, Talon Staff Reporter