Every summer, I would sit at my Tinkerbell lap tray for hours together and write pages and pages worth of what I thought were the world's greatest mystery tales. Though no one else understood my mysterious detective-like characters, it never stopped me from writing. As I grew older, writing became something more personal for me to express my thoughts and emotions when all else seemed to fail and I started to feel and enjoy the true essence of writing. I began to make my home under piles of words and my friends amidst pages of different books.

As I grew older, I seemed to have lost the time to sit and write mindless stories by getting stuck in the business of life. When I found out about Odyssey, I immediately knew I wanted to apply. That decision has stayed one of my best ones yet. From the time I met my idol to cringy dad jokes to friendships to family, I have written so many articles. No matter the article, no matter the number of views, and no matter who was sharing it, I was able to do the thing that I love to do the most. Write.

I loved being able to sit down once or a few times a week and write something meaningful to me and a few dozen other people. I was excited to brainstorm ideas and then put those ideas out into the world.

But most importantly, Odyssey gave me a voice. It let me say what I wanted to say, when I wanted to. Odyssey will always have a special place in my heart. But many years and articles later, I have come to the decision that this is the moment where I need to say goodbye.

I knew this day would eventually come. Eventually, I would have to say goodbye to something that has kept me to a level of sanity through all the ups and downs of high school. What a run. Four years. 130+ articles. Hours and hours of writing. Thousands of social shares. An experience unlike any other. I will admit I am having a hard time writing this last piece. Part of me does not want to admit that this is the end. But as they say… "All good things must come to an end". Odyssey has molded me into the writer I am today. That forgotten passion has been reignited to new heights. As I move on to college, Journalism will always stay with me and become my partner in crime. I promise that I will never stop writing.

I have no other words other than Thank you. Thank you odyssey for being my shoulder to lean on. For being the place where I would express myself in any way whether it be ranting, writing about my culture, expressing gratitude to my loved ones, or simply commenting on the newest pop culture. Thank you for becoming a safe place.

Lastly, I would like to thank the Alpharetta Odyssey team for being so wonderful to work with, the Odyssey platform for allowing young adults to express themselves, and my friends and family who have supported me throughout this journey. . Whether I was writing about immigration, an article dedicated to my family, or just my own spin on a certain topic, someone always had something positive to say. No matter how busy or crammed my schedule was, the feedback I would receive truly motivated me to keep creating content.

The fact that someone can relate to your articles or that you could help them get through a similar situation you were facing is probably one of the most rewarding feelings you can have as a journalist.

Your support has truly meant the world to me and has acted as my inspiration to keep writing.

I am forever grateful for this experience.