I can say with confidence that I was not the best student in high school. I prioritized my extracurriculars over my school work, I never said no to a weekend excursion with a close friend, etc… I wasn’t much of a procrastinator, but when it came to essays and tests, I now see that I put in only minimal effort. At that time, it was enough for me.

If someone asked me if I would redo my entire high school career, before thinking, I would probably say, “In a heartbeat.” I have felt the constant regret of not trying hard in high school. I wasn’t satisfied with my grades, but never urged myself to do something about them.

After every year, I would always tell myself, “Next year is the year you’re going to get straight A’s.” But once I got a terrible grade, I felt unmotivated. I felt like whatever I did to boost my grade was not going to be enough. It would never be enough.

However, whenever I am with my high school friends, I realize that I would not have these relationships if I put all my efforts into my academics. I would not trade the friendships that I have with my high school friends for any grade, for any A on a test, essay, or assignment. I would not change my decision of going to a pasta party to bond with my swim teammates rather than going home to study. I would not go back and change any decision that I made.

I value personal connections more than many aspects of my life. I think that having relationships with others and talking to the people around me is important. It is healthy and it makes me feel good. Even a simple “Hi, how are you?” while passing someone through the halls is important to have a healthy life.

I will leave you with a couple of things I have learned from the last two weeks of my senior year of high school. In the end, everyone will say these exact words: “I wish I had gotten to know some of you better.” But they never act on these words.

They think that if these were said to the general public, something magical will happen and everyone will be friends with everyone. That is not the case. In fact, that would be a miracle.

To you, I only ask for one simple thing. The person you have been meaning to get to know better, spark up a conversation with him or her. Even if you are a freshman in high school, I can tell you that the 4 years go by in a blink of an eye.

While writing this article, I changed my mind. I would redo my high school life again, but not to study harder or get better grades. I would take more risks; I would audition for the Shakespeare plays, change those “Hi, how are you's?” to more meaningful and deeper connections.