Coming to Madison (McDaniel?) I was extremely optimistic about what highschool would have in store for me. Of course there was a little bit of nervousness but overall I was excited. But I never expected to learn the things I did during these 4 years. I learned about people, and how to navigate through different obstacles and relationships. I learned what I was good at, the things that filled me with passion. I also learned what I was bad at at the things I dreaded most. High school was a wild ride, full of ups and downs, cliche I know, but if I could go back and do it again I don’t think there’s anything I would change. 

Freshman year was a blur, when I started understanding people and relationships. I made so many new friends, but also lost a lot. It’s when I discovered that choir wasn’t for me the way I thought it was during middle school. It’s also when Ilearned that I’ll probably never be good at science (shout-out to Ms.House for helping out with that). Although I found these things I was bad at, it was helping me discover who I was. There was this huge identity crisis the beginning  freshman year where I didnt know who I was and I’m not sure if I ever truly figured it out. 

Sophomore year, that was the year I learned I actually have to study. I took AP Psychology (shout out to Mr. James for taking a chance on me) and it was the hardest thing I had ever done, it was super discouraging and I went through such a crisis but it was so worth it. This was also the year that I started cheerleading. It was something no one, not even myself, saw me doing. But It ended up being the most enjoyable thing I did in highschool. It was an encouraging push because I was good at something again (shout-out to Shar because I definitely wasn’t that good). I joined journalism my sophomore year as well, I had always had a passion for writing and it was something that interested me for a long time. It was also the year I got into my first serious relationship which was crazy because a month prior meeting him I swore off boys for the entirety of sophomore year.

Junior year was honestly my year. I know that’s weird because most people hate junior year but I did great and was happy. The person I call my best friend to this day, we became really close this year. I continued with cheer, and got better and was offered the position of captain for the following year. I moved up to advanced journalism and became the editor of the commentary section, not to brag but iI was really good at it. This was also the year I joined speech and debate, which I was really really good at. It gave me a sense of belonging and was the best part of my junior year. Now the year definitely wasn’t perfect, I was in pre-calc which was really hard for me, and it’s also the year Covid took over everyone’s lives. I did really bad the first half of quarantine, my mental health started getting bad again and I was struggling with school. But I managed to pass through junior year and that’s all I could ask. 

Senior year, the final stretch. In terms of high school academics. It sucked. Being strictly online has been so hard for me because I find it so hard to focus. I did not enjoy online schooling literally at all and I hope to never do it again. It also sucked for a lot of other reasons, I didn’t get my cheer season as captain, and I didn’t get my varsity debate season. Fortunately for me, journalism was able to continue and I was made Editor-in-Chief. We created the first online platform our school has ever had, and even began doing podcasts which is unheard of at most PPS high schools. It was a good year for personal growth as well. I applied and got accepted into college, and decided where I was going (Go Ducks!). The relationship that I talked about from sophomore year? Yeah that ended so I could grow and it was hard for me to do. There was also a lot of other really messed up stuff that happened to me this year, but unfortunately I’m not allowed to talk about it, but trust me it prompted some character development. 

The overall message I am trying to portray today is that high school gets easier. And when your parents say you’re gonna learn, and love, and grow during these years I promise you they are not lying.