Things I Wished I Knew Before Senior Year
By Ella Woodbury ‘23
When I was younger, I couldn’t wait to be in high school. I always looked forward to the freedom that I would eventually receive. I couldn’t wait to be able to drive and take myself wherever I wanted to go. Younger ‘me’ was absolutely obsessed with cars. If you saw me without a toy car in my hand, something was probably wrong.
When I eventually got into high school, I just wanted time to slow down. The years were going by so fast. One second I was at freshman orientation getting hit with a spike ball right in the eye and visiting the nurse before the school year had even started, and next it’s the first day of senior year. At the end of junior year, I looked toward the fall with dread. To me, being a senior meant my years of having fun and goofing off were over. You have to think about college all the time, and there is no more room to screw up. You have to be the best version of yourself 24/7. The room for error is very marginal. It also meant that I had one year left at home before it was time to go be independent. I spent all of my summer thinking about senior year negatively. Over the summer, I volunteer for horizons, and they always ask what grade I’m in just out of curiosity. They ask everyone. It wasn’t until I was asked what grade I was in everyday at horizons, that I finally accepted the fact that I was a senior.
Over the summer, I wish I had accepted the fact that I was going to be a senior and stopped viewing senior year as the end of my childhood. In many of the conversations I had with friends over the summer, I talked about how much I was dreading being a senior. However, all of my friends were so excited to be seniors because they were excited for the freedom they were going to receive. They were also excited for the next chapter of their life that will start after the upcoming year, but that is still something I am trying to get excited about. I wish that over the summer someone had told me to just accept it: Accept that life feels like it is flying by, and stop dwelling on the sadness. Think about the positives. If ‘me’at that point in time would have known how many amazing memories I have made with my class and friends, I bet she would have been saying how excited she was for senior year. Some of the amazing memories I have made so far happened during our class trip at the beginning of the year. We played so many games on the lawn at the Wisdom House. Everyone was included in everything. The bonding, at first, felt forced, but I’m so glad our dean and advisors forced us to bond because the year has been much more fun since we connected. I also think back to senior movie night. My friends and I had gotten dinner at this poke place in Westport before the movie, and then after the movie, we went to our friend’s house and played Just Dance in his basement; it was just a blast!
Another thing I wish I knew before senior year was that senior fall is very challenging. I’m not saying this to scare you. Though it has certainly been fun, you will be stressed a lot, and that’s okay. The specific areas that are stressful are just keeping your grades up and writing college apps. Even clicking the submit button is terrifying. My advice is to get ahead on your college apps over the summer; it has saved me so far this year. Another piece of advice: Don’t slack off on classes. I know that school can be tiring and sometimes the last thing you want to do is schoolwork, but really concentrate during the school week. Give yourself a break over the weekend, but also use the weekend to your advantage: Get ahead if you can. You can still have fun and keep your grades up and get ahead. You just have to manage your time wisely, and remember that you didn’t work this hard to give up when things get challenging. Senior year might test you, but you are strong enough to make it through. It will all be worth it in the end.
