When I came home for winter break, like most college students tend to do, I celebrated Christmas with my family, spent tons of time with my friends from high school and slept in my glorious bed. The list of glorious things about being home just goes on and on…
With all of this time that I had, I thought a lot about why I chose to leave the great state of Texas for college. Returning to same places and seeing the same faces reminded me why I wanted to go out of state. Thus far in 2016 I’ve tried to look forward to my future; however, I’ve found myself reminiscing a lot about high school recently.
High school definitely prepared me for the academic side of college. Going to a college preparatory school required taking college-level classes and constantly preparing for the SAT.
While it helped academically, high school definitely didn’t tell you about everything else that goes along with it.
It’s weird visiting your old high school. You never feel more like an outsider than when you walk down the hallways, talk to your old teachers and witness people who are still in high school doing high school things. This place you knew so well six months ago is suddenly a distant memory.
Unless it was truly traumatizing, most people look back on those four years of their lives with fondness. I still do remember some of the stupid dramas that happened whilst being an insecure teenager, but now they are way easier to laugh about.
Even though we all eagerly counted down the days until we left the halls of our school forever, we all miss it from time to time. While it was happening, you had no idea you would long for the simpler times. When you’re trapped in the high school bubble, it feels like you’re never going to get out and things aren’t ever going to change. It’s hard to fathom that one day you’ll never see most of the people you graduated with again and that you’ll lose touch with people you thought were your closest friends. It’s a weird feeling, but it’s a natural feeling. It’s naiveté.
I can’t help but smile at the fond memories and the not so fond ones. The four years that flew by in the blink of an eye formed me into the person that I am today, and I will be forever grateful for those who impacted my life during that short period of time. If any of you are reading this, I wish you nothing but the best. I hope you grow to be the person you want to be, explore the world, and live the best life that you can.
