18-year-old Adam Amanuel graduates from high school on June 3rd. Amanuel was just selected as the Most Valuable Basketball Player in CIF Division 5. Amanuel led St. Bernard High to be the runner-up for the State Finals in the 2015-2016 season. Known for his deadly outside shot, Amanuel is calm, cool and collected and extremely intelligent on and off the court. Aside from being a standout basketball player and athlete, Amanuel is a scholar and enjoys writing poems and essays.One of Amanuel’s teachers, Abraham Alvarez -- who himself was an All American baseball player at Cal State Long Beach and played for the Boston Red Sox – states: “You can see the spirit shine through this young man. I am quite thankful I was able to encounter Adam and be his teacher. He understands what it is to be so simple and still get everything out of life. He is soft-spoken, intelligent, and determined; not a lot of things get past this kid and if they do he´ll embrace his missteps with positivity. The light shines through this young man.” On the lines below, Amanuel explicates his philosophy on life, his love of basketball, family and poetry and the interconnection between it all.