Face masks coordinated with every outfit and sanitizer strapped to my polka-dot backpack defined the ninth grade for me. My freshman year didn’t match my idea of high school at all. However, after an almost three-month “Spring Break” followed by an extremely isolating summer, how could I know what high school would consist of?
I expected the complicated relationships, the intense academic pressure and the daunting process of self-discovery, but the pandemic made my freshman year even more complex. I didn’t know a lot of people when I started high school because I only attended MISD for my eighth-grade year. The rules put in place to protect students from the virus such as the six feet rule and assigned cafeteria seats made it difficult to socialize.
At the same time, Legacy provided typical high school events which allowed room to interact with other students, including the homecoming game. Although the game allowed me to meet new people, that ended up as the only football game I attended that year. Honestly, I wish I would’ve gone to more.
When sophomore year started and rules lifted, I experienced an easier time meeting new people but the stress regarding grades intensified, establishing a new high school obstacle. I spent most nights finishing homework and projects, and crying about the amount of homework and projects.
Sophomore year I started taking journalism which stressed me out the least compared to my other classes. I planned on learning more about design so I could join yearbook. Instead, I learned more about my writing skills and joined Newspaper; the best decision I made in all four years of high school. Even when I only took the Journalism 1 course, I felt like I fit in more with the people around me.
My expectations for my junior year were quite low because upperclassmen told me that my junior year would be the worst year of high school. For the first time, I experienced academic burnout and retained little motivation to get things done. My grades didn’t matter as much and up until that point my grades always mattered to me, so I had to figure out what I cared about now that I didn’t care about academics. Journalism helped me figure that out.
Several journalism students and I went to St. Louis, Missouri for a convention allowing me to get on a plane for the first time. I even got a window seat. The trip pushed me to try different things like riding the metro and conquering my slight fear of heights on the Gateway Arch. I learned how much I enjoyed new experiences. This trip alone made junior year my favorite year of high school.
Senior year didn’t live up to the previous year nor did I expect it to. Majority of the school year involved college preparation. While the process of applying to colleges and scholarships burdened me, high school itself felt light and mostly fun this year; the hardest part: ignoring the fact that I was experiencing everything for the last time. The large senior mum I’ve waited four years to wear is also my last mum ever. I’ve kept track of the last football game I went to, the last pep rally I went to, the last time I used my chromebook, and most importantly, the last story I get to write for this newspaper.
I used to look forward to graduating and leaving Legacy High School behind me. While I can’t wait to move on to the next chapter of my life, it didn’t take long to regret taking these experiences for granted. Every year of high school, I approached with certain high or low expectations of how the school year would go and I don’t think I guessed correctly any year.
I’ll be a freshman again this fall, and I have little idea what college entails for me. High school taught me to live in the moment and not try to predict the future because life happens the way it wants despite my assumptions.
