When I think about my high school journey, I do not think about any specific time or experience, but rather the relationships I built. Many people have asked me what I enjoyed most over the past four years, and the truth may come as a surprise.
Entering my freshman year at Algonquin, I was a new student and had one friend and a couple of acquaintances. I know a lot of people worry about meeting new people, and the typical advice would be to try new things and join clubs or extracurricular activities. So I tried soccer, DECA, Speech and Debate, Pickleball Club, and many more. As cliché as it sounds, trying new things allowed me to meet so many people that I call friends today.
I met some of my closest friends from my soccer team in the fall of freshman year, even though I am a completely different person today. There is something to be said about the difficulties of enduring a long season in the rain, blinding heat, sprints, victories and defeats.
On a different note, I have also found deep and sincere relationships during my time at Speech and Debate, which is a unique experience in comparison to a sport. In my experience, early mornings cramming case studies truly bring people together. Everything you do can be beneficial, and there are great people to meet no matter what you choose.
If I had to boil it down to one thing I realized in high school, I would say that it is important to understand that everyone else is figuring things out just like you. It is easy to be frustrated after failing your second math test in a row–an unfortunate truth for me last spring–but the reality is that the kid sitting next to you probably did the same, or will at some point. Do not let setbacks define how you act because trust me there will be a lot of them, but also many triumphs.
A lot of people say that they can’t wait to leave high school, but my experience made it one that I will look back on fondly. No one wants to study or wake up early, but there is something nice about knowing that all of my friends are doing the same, even if they are showing up at 9:55 instead of 8:00, you know who you are. At the end of the day, I won’t remember any test grades or projects, but I will remember the people who made high school special.
