As corny as it is to say, senior year really does fly by. I feel like it’s still September, entering the building with all the determination to make the most out of my final year of high school. Looking back, I spent so much of high school focusing on things outside of high school, and I honestly wish I hadn’t. I think the biggest piece of advice I can provide to any student is to focus on now.
There’s no need to wait for the “important” moments, as they’ll fly by just as fast as the present moments. At the beginning of the school year, everybody is so focused on prom, prom houses, or summer plans, and graduation, but I would argue that the smaller moments are what matter more. Morning Honey Dew Redbull runs, laughing too loudly in a silent but crowded class, rushing down to the lunchroom to pick your favorite table to meet your friends for the first time all day— the small, simple things become what you’ll remember (and miss) most.
People don’t realize how limited senior year really is. While you’re constantly pressured with college emails and told that the beginning of the year is the most important, life suddenly becomes very overwhelming, and before you know it, you’re balancing schoolwork while trying to plan the next four years of your life.
I think it’s incredibly important to remember that you are not supposed to have everything figured out at 17 or 18. Even the people who seem like they have it all together are just as uncertain as you are. This isn’t meant to scare you, but to remind you not to put so much pressure on yourself, as the future changes constantly, and so will you.
Your future is not determined by one grade, one acceptance letter, or one mistake. Everybody grows at different speeds, and there is no “right” path. Some people leave for colleges far away, some stay close to home, some take gap years, and some go into trades. None of those paths is more valid than another. Everybody is exactly where they need to be at this point in their lives.
Even though I know where I’ll be for the next couple of years, I still don’t have everything figured out, and that is okay. I can already see myself changing and growing in ways I cannot predict now, as nobody truly knows what they’re doing until they experience it for themselves.
But to go back to my original point: live in the moment. Do not let things slip by in such a busy and unpredictable year. Take pictures even when you don’t want to. Go to games and dress up for the themes, or go to dances even if you think it’s corny. Talk to new people and branch out. Be kind, be selfless, and most importantly, be you.
No matter where life takes you or how you get there, your future is ultimately shaped by you. Make the choices that place you where you would like to be, but do not be afraid if life leads you somewhere unexpected.
