Ahhhh, High School

Ahhhh, high school.

    “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

Ahhhh, high school.

It truly will be the best of times - the time you make friendships that will literally last a lifetime. It will be the time you make poor decisions that result in great stories that you will retell for years and years. And, you will learn…great stories are one thing, but you will learn to make the best decisions you can. Some will turn out great and others…not so great. And you will learn from all of them.

It will be the worst of times - the times you make the biggest decisions, when you are the least prepared to make them. You will feel pressure. You will be told that the decisions you make are for your entire life. If you fail an exam, a class…really at anything…you will feel horrible. You will feel you have ruined your entire life. 

I call nonsense on that. 

We all have a path to follow and we’re not completely in control of that path. Make the best of any situation. Learn from your failures - often they lead to your greatest understandings.

Some teachers will inspire you. They will ignite your imagination for life. They will lift you up and encourage you to follow your dreams, whether it be through poetry, drama, science, literature, sports, music or any of a score of other disciplines.

Ahhhh, high school.

High school is a scary, fantastic place. It is a place where you will find your crowd. You will fit in and make new friends. It is a place where everything is magnified - where the most momentous things of the day will, in time, fade into triviality. It is a time and place to find yourself, to try on new versions of yourself and feel which one authentically reflects the real you.

Ahhh, high school. Every adult wishes they could go back, then instantly revises that wish to choose only the fun, funny and fantastic moments of that fabulous four-year journey.

 “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done”