Dear High School,
It has only been six months since I left you, but I miss you already. I wanted to say thank you for four really great years and everything that came along with them.
First of all, thank you for my classmates. My classmates were the amazing people who let me be on the Powderpuff Football team even though we all know I cannot catch a football to save my life. They were the ones who suffered through Spanish class with me, who could be found taking naps in the hallway before exams, and who are probably still a little angry about having to take graduation pictures in the rain. Thank so you much for classmates who are my best friends.
Thank you for my teammates. These were the people who ran down the field to hug me when I scored a goal, who cried with me after a hard loss, and who took cheesy "High School Musical" style jumping pictures with me after an awesome win. Thank you for giving me teammates so I would never have to sit in the ice bath alone.
Thank you for giving me coaches who taught me to love the game I was playing. Thank you for coaches who taught me the importance of teamwork, integrity, and good old-fashioned hard work. Thank you for giving me coaches who are fantastic role models. While I may have really hated all those sprints they made me run, thank you for teaching me to be strong.
Thank you for giving me teachers who really cared. Thank you for the teacher who somehow managed to make math fun and for the teacher who told us she "loves to learn" so many times, I started to love it too. Thank you for the teacher who made me love biology and inspired me to become a nurse.
Thank you for those really big chocolate muffins you sold in the cafeteria.
Thank you for preparing me for college. I know you said this was your plan all along, but I admit I really did not believe you. As it turns out, that 10-page paper and thirty-minute presentation you made me suffer through has made college feel like a piece of cake.
Thank you for giving me a passion for service. Whether it was volunteering at a daycare, collecting food for the needy, or organizing a fundraising event, I can't thank you enough for allowing me to serve. I am excited and eager to begin a career in which I get to help others every day. Thank you for that.
Most of all, thank you for teaching me to be myself. Thank you for allowing me to stand out and giving me endless opportunities to try new things.
Sincerely,
A College Student
