A few days before my graduation ceremony in May, my school hosted a luncheon for the senior class. Everything was nice; the seniors devoured steak and brownies, had lunch with their friends in a school setting one last time and talked about their plans for the summer. Then came the dreaded moment: passing back letters each of us wrote to ourselves four years ago.
As I heard my former honors english teacher from ninth grade call my name, I began to cringe. I already knew what to expect in my letter. I could not expect any profound statement from my 14-year-old self. However, I was a little surprised with what I found.
The letter began very plainly with a greeting to “Senior Self.” The date is August 20, 2012. That was the year I feared for my life as I was fooled into believing that the Mayan calendar predicted the end of the world. I had very irrational fears at 14.
I hope you haven’t gotten into any trouble, and that you have somehow found your way to fame. If you haven’t, then keep trying. You’ll get there, don’t worry.
For some reason, I had a desire to become a country singer when I was 14. I would like to take a moment to say that I am not a very good singer, and that my love for country music has been limited to the works of Kacey Musgraves due my lack of tolerance for songs about mud and tractors. However, this statement still applies to me today. My dream is to be a very famous journalist. I want to work for CNN someday and be best friends with Anderson Cooper. So, thanks for the encouragement, Freshman Self.
Have you met On Direction or Demi Lovato yet?! Are you no longer 0/5?!
The summer before freshman year began, One Direction decided to jump into my life and completely ruin it. To this day, I am still a dedicated 1D fan, but I have toned it down a bit since I was 14. The same with Demi Lovato. She is such an inspiration to me, and her music helped me throughout freshman year, which was a really rough point in my life. You are probably confused on what “0/5” is and when I read this letter a month ago, I had forgotten for a moment what that had meant as well. After joining the 1D fandom, I made it my mission to get at least one follow on Twitter from one of the boys. Of course, I had my heart set on a Niall follow, but you get what you get. Since Zayn left the band, I guess it has to be changed to “0/4.”
Wait, that may never change.
It did not change. I still have not met any member of One Direction or Demi Lovato. I still do not have a follow from Harry, Liam, Niall or Louis. I did, however, see One Direction in concert in Atlanta for their Where We Are Tour, so that is close enough.
If you haven’t met them, now is the time to find them.
Like I said, I have toned down the dedication for these people since four years ago. I am honestly embarrassed with this statement, and I can assure you that I would never track someone down to meet them. While this seemed like a bright idea at the time, it does not sound like one now.
Today, I am a freshman. And since I’ve learned about “Freshman Friday,” the days are gonna go by fast.
For those who do not know about Freshman Friday, this is where the seniors dedicate the first Friday of the school year to the freshmen by dunking them into trashcans. Yes, I indeed did fear being thrown into a trashcan on my first Friday of freshman year. I am not totally sure as to why I thought the days would go by faster with discovering Freshman Friday. If anything, the days would go by slower because I was dreading the arrival of Friday.
As of now, you’re sitting behind a guy who is fangirling over ‘Planet of the Apes.’ He’s loud. Very. And now he is talking about pulling down his pants.
Freshman year is a weird time for everyone and I can guarantee you that this kid probably realized the same thing at the end of our first year of high school. I remember very vividly who this was. I also remember being so happy when he moved seats after the first few weeks of class. This kid did so many terrible things in honors english. I still feel bad for our teacher that year.
Okay, I hope you haven’t failed any classes, because if you have, something may happen. It won’t be good either. DAD AND MOM WILL BE ANGRY.
I did not fail any classes in high school. I ended up graduating as sixth in my entire class with an Advanced with Honors Diploma. At graduation, I sat on the stage where everyone was able to see my colorful regalia. Why I thought I would fail a class, I am not totally sure. I was 14 and scared of high school. Give me a break.
So, whatever has happened, I hope it’s good. Good luck in life. Adios!
Life has been good. There were times where it was definitely the worst, but right now, I am very content with life. (My Spanish, on the other hand, could be better.)
The worst part of high school happened a month ago. My best friend and I stopped talking because I reconnected with someone that I became friends with around the same time as her in seventh grade. It broke my heart that I had lost someone so close to me all because she could not handle the fact that I had other friends. But when one door closes, another one opens. I now consider the person my best friend left me over one of my best friends. Like my old best friend, he is hilarious, supportive and quite handsome (but you did not hear this from me). We share a love for memes, Spiderman and good times. He even introduced me to the masterpiece that is Star Wars and does not mind my love for One Direction. We make a great duo. How anyone could be mad at me for being friends with him, I will never know.
It is healthier to keep my mind away from the bad things that happened during high school, because it allows me to focus on the good things that happened, the ones that truly matter. With this letter, I was able to think back on honors english from ninth grade and some of the great times I had in that class. Then it allowed me to think back on some of the highest points I had in high school. Memory after memory came rushing back to me as if they all had happened just last week. This letter did not leave me an emotional wreck, but it did leave me wondering why in the world I never thought to write most of them down in a journal.
Do I think that my Freshman Self was a goofy nerd who cared too much about boys in a band? Yes. Do I still cringe at my younger self when I see pictures from four years ago? Of course. But that is what made me who I am today. Four years ago, I was very ambitious. Today, my ambitions are taking me to whole new level of success. The free spirit I had as a freshman still thrives within me four years later and that is something I am proud to have kept.
I think that it is good to reflect on the past, even if it does make you cringe a lot. This letter does not make me want to go back in time and be a freshman again. It makes me want to continue on and indulge in the good things that are yet to happen in my life.
Besides this being the worst letter I have written to anyone, I do think that I had some very insightful words at age 14. So, thank you, Freshman Self, for reminding me of who I am and how much I have grown up.
