The Do And Don’ts Of High School
Dear Freshman Kayla,
There have been plenty of times when our 8th-grade homeroom teacher, Ms.W, took time out of the day for us to write a freshman letter to ourselves. Those times were the last moments before the summer of 2017. Before we knew it, we were at the bottom of the social rank once again, as the class of 2021 freshmen. Little did we know, 8th grade Kayla was in for quite a ride.
If I do remember correctly, the 8th letter that I had written for my freshman self was mainly to “ continue playing basketball and never change”. Yea I spoke too soon. Going into my senior year, there are many things that I wish I was able to tell you (freshman self), the do and don’ts. So here is an awfully wholesome freshman letter to myself.
I’m here to tell you that high school isn’t like High School Musical at all! Now that I caught your attention. Stop watching those awful “ advice for incoming freshmen!” videos. High school isn’t the same for everyone, those videos are just ridiculous. Over the past few years, I’ve been in an education system rank called High School. I wish I’d known this earlier but, high school should be the time to have fun! The time when we start finding ourselves. The time when we start thinking of what we want our adult life to be like but, at the same time, make sure to live in the moment while doing so. High school is sure darn fast. And with your luck Kayla, a huge pandemic decides to break out in the middle of your junior year. To make it better, there’s a huge percentage you won’t get to have your senior year at all due to the pandemic.
What I’m trying to say is, stop hiding behind the bushes! Go to every football game. Join every club you see at school. Enjoy the morning health class walks. Dance in the middle of the dance floor during homecoming. Just live in the moment. During our freshmen orientation when Mr. Frazier said that high school flies by fast, he wasn’t kidding. High school does change you and it changes who you hang out with. Would you believe me if I said I was the senior class vice president? Crazy how times could change a shy introverted Kayla into a senior class VP. With all that said, I have one last insight for you to remember. Being out of your comfort zone isn’t such a bad thing after all.
Best of luck,
Senior Kayla