As graduation comes closer, the bittersweet feeling of finally finishing high school overwhelms me. Over the years, many experiences and challenges have shaped who I’ve become. I’ve met unforgettable people and created memories I plan to tell my future kids about. Although this has been my second home for seven years, I’m excited to enter a new chapter in my life and explore things out of my comfort zone. Thanks to the guidance from teachers, counselors, and friends, I feel prepared to tackle unfamiliar changes and take advantage of new opportunities.
One of my favorite clubs I’m a part of is Triton Student Union National Alliance on Mental Illness (TSUNAMI). I’ve made lifelong friends and many memories through this club. This club was where I found my passion of helping others, which led me to choose a career in the medical field. I’m grateful that I was able to be a part of a club whose purpose is to give back and ensure students have proper support in school. This club has taught me many skills, such as compassion and advocacy that I will carry with me into the future. One of my favorite memories from this club is putting together the bulletin board in front of the school at the beginning of each month. I designed all the posters and chose a color theme for each month. Seeing it outside the school makes me feel accomplished because I was able to have a positive impact on students. This memory will always remind me of things I’ve done to make a positive difference in people’s lives.
Another one of my favorite memories is spending time with my advisory class outside of school. Of course I’m biased and think my advisory is the best, but I have many reasons to think this. We always come through to support one another and are always willing to dedicate time for each other. We’ve had numerous hangouts outside of school such as our boat trip, our bonfire, and going to a Padres game. My favorite memory out of all of these is the bonfire. It was mostly student led and almost everyone showed up with a contribution such as food, drinks, and games. It was nice to see people showing up with tables and chairs and it made me feel like we don’t need adults to guide us anymore as we did when we were in sixth grade. A lot of us drove there ourselves, and it felt so bittersweet to see that we were finally growing up and about to become real adults. It made me reminisce on how little we used to be and, how now, we’re becoming independent members of society. Although they annoy me a lot during class, I will always look up to these people because we’ve gone through so much together (don’t tell them I said this)! I will think about this class a lot, and I hope we all continue to stay in touch.
To end this, I’d like to give some advice to incoming high schoolers. Something I wish I took more seriously was my schoolwork. Although I passed the majority of my classes, I regret not trying harder because my grades weren’t the best for applying to college. I regret it now but there’s nothing I can do to change it. I never understood the importance of grades until my senior year when I was applying to college. Even though I got into colleges that I was somewhat proud of, I wish I got into some nursing programs that would’ve made it easier for me to get my nursing license instead of having to transfer into programs later on, which will take longer. However, from this, I’ve learned to take college seriously and to work as hard as I can to get into nursing programs and get my license. This was a valuable experience because I was able to learn from my mistakes and I plan to make a change for the better. Life happens and things might not always go as planned for you but as long as you learn from your experiences, I think it will be worth it.
I’ve had many experiences that have shaped who I am today. I will forever be grateful for my high school years and I thank everyone who has supported me along the way. I also want to thank myself for making it this far!
