As I near the beginning of my senior year of high school, an anxious feeling is rising in me. This is the last chapter of my entire high school career, meaning everything is about to change. I will no longer live with my parents considering I don’t plan on staying in the area or surrounding areas of where I have lived for the past nine years of my life. I will no longer have to dress in regards to dress code, will no longer stand and walk the crowded halls at the sound of the bell, I will no longer have to wait in long lunch lines, will no longer take part in my usual extracurricular activities or clubs. It’s nerve-wracking, but exciting, thrilling even to know I have one year left until I’m out in the real world with every opportunity to make both this life and myself, what I want it to be.

Many of my siblings have told me to cherish my high school years because they go by so quickly, and I would always roll my eyes and think, I wish it could go by as fast as they make it seem. Now here I am, about to enter senior year and they were right. It seems like just yesterday I was a freshman, nervous about not being able to locate my classes or find a place to sit in the lunchroom.

I’m proud of the transformation I have undergone during high school these past three years and I have certain classes, teachers, experiences (good and bad ones), friends, enemies, and frenemies to thank for that. I would not have changed a single thing I have done these past three school years for it has shaped me into who I am today. In high school, I've also discovered what kind of person I should and want to be and what I want to major in in college. I've also decided what kind of career I want for myself as an adult in high school.

Several teachers have given me lessons that apply to both inside and outside the classroom, lessons I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Even the not-so-great teachers have taught me lessons without even knowing so, so I thank them as well.

Freshman year, I had more friends than I could count on one hand. Going into senior year, I only have about three or four that have not left my side and that's okay; that's more than okay because I know they are genuine and true. I'm even thankful for the ones who are no longer a part of my life because it was good while it lasted, even if they were there just for a little. Another thing is, some people just drift apart when they enter high school and befriend others, seeming to forget about you. That's just a part of growing up, and I've learned not to pay much mind to that.

They say your high school years are the best four years of your life. I won't lie and say these past three have been an easy ride and that I enjoyed every second of it because I didn't, but I do plan on entering senior year with a positive attitude. I do plan on participating in all the senior events and activities and making the most of it with my friends before we're all packed up and ready to depart ways to college; where we may never see or talk to each other as often as we do now.

It's scary to know by this time next year, I will be getting ready to leave the small city I have spent more than half of my life in and the familiarity and comfort of my own home; but it's an experience I can't wait for. These past three years have not been the greatest for me, but they haven't been the worst and I am not through yet with the fourth so who knows what can happen? What I do know is that I am more than ready to take on senior year, the fourth and final chapter of my high school career.