Goodbye, Hello.

I am putting this on here so I have access to it online, but this was originally a pastiche that I had written--pastiche meaning that it had my words but also the words of others.  In this case, I had bits and pieces of Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken."  I used this for a performance that I did for a senior showcase.  However, I wanted to put a version out here with only my words, so here you go.  Goodbyes and hellos from the eyes of a senior...now a freshman loving every second of the college experience.  The spoken words went alongside the video at the bottom, though it won't fit correctly now without the Robert Frost words.  This will give you a general sense of the piece though.

Goodbye

Nothingness lies ahead
A dark sky
A blank page
Silence
An empty stage
A deserted room
A void.
Full of fear, I look down the road of nothingness
I can’t see the end--only the end of this road.
The end of this road, I should be ready...for the nothingness, I mean.
I listened, did all the “right” things, got all the right answers.
But all I see is the nothingness.
This road of nothing.
But nothing leads to...something.
A dark sky--full of stars, then a sunrise
Silence--full of notes, then a song
A blank page--full of words, then a story
An empty stage--full of a set, then a show
A deserted room--full of people, then a community
A void--full of a creator, then a me.
I turn around.
The road of nothingness isn’t THE beginning.
It’s A beginning
That connects to the end.
The end of now.
I see more than all the “right” things, all the “right” answers.
I see the words, the smiles, the tears, the happy, the hurt.
I see the nights cried to sleep
I see the mornings full of hope.
dI see the experiences.
I see the people, their smiles, their words.
I turn back around, my world within.
The road of nothingness still looms ahead.
An unknown horizon
But something is there
Something beautiful.
The road behind within
The road ahead of nothing…
Something.

Hello.

Dear 2016 Seniors

Dear 2016 Seniors,

A year ago, I was in your shoes, about to start my senior year.  I was posting all my "Last First Day" posts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and scrolling through the posts of my friends who had done the same.  I was excited to be at the top of the school, flying through one last year of high school before adventuring out into the world of college.  I was already stressing over college applications and scholarships and decisions that truly wouldn't be made for almost nine more months.  I was being told not to "wish senior year away" and blah blah blah.  Now, a year later, I am sitting on my front porch on the first "school night" that my underclassmen friends are dreading.  I have seen the sad posts about summer ending, the "wow I can't believe I am already a senior" posts.  I've seen all the high school schedules floating around online.  And yet here I am, sitting in the warm summer night air, still in disbelief that I am graduated, that tomorrow I won't be walking through the front doors of my high school, that all of my friends are starting to scatter across the country to move on to bigger and better things.  I learned a lot during my high school years, especially senior year, but to be honest, these were the most important:

Reflect
Senior year is so weird because you're constantly looking ahead to what's next, whether that be college or the workforce or the military or even just ahead to the next test or school event.  Yet at the same time, you are looking back at all the years of school--of life--that you've gone through.  Something about senior year, especially those late nights, makes you really look at life, as a whole.  That is good.  Evaluate your life.  Find out where you came from, where you are, and where you're going.  But know that today is most important.  Live in today.  Don't miss today.

Love
As I looked at my life, I realized that what I remembered--what my memories were really made of--were the people in my life.  People are so important, and whether you love the people in your grade or think you hate them, you will miss many of them when you graduate.  When they walk across the stage and are handed that prized diploma, you will realize that when some of them walk out of that graduation, they will walk out of your life.  Love them.  Love them all.  I don't care who said what about that girl or that boy--love them.  Don't get caught up in the drama, because there will be some.  People get weird senior year.  Remember that you're all in a state of mixed emotions, and just love people.

Say "Thank You"
You didn't get to senior year by yourself, no matter what you think.  Thank your teachers, your parents, your friends, your counselors, your custodians, EVERYONE.  Senior year can get a lot about "me"--my college, my scholarships, my awards, my graduation.  The attention will be on you a lot.  When it is, use that attention to shine a light on what other people did to get you to where you are.  Tell them thank you.  THANK YOUR TEACHERS.  Whether you love them or hate them, they put up with you and got you to graduation.  Thank them.

Encourage and Support
This also requires taking the focus off yourself.  Everyone, and I do mean everyone, you meet is doing something super cool.  You just have to find out what it is.  Talk to people.  And then go support them.  Go watch the soccer team.  Go see plays.  Read the newspaper that your friend writes.  Support people.  And when they go off to college or to do whatever they may do, support them.

Prioritize
Remember...people are most important.  School and grades matter--a lot.  College applications will teach you that in a hurry.  However, people will be what you remember.  My math teacher junior year said, "Make school work around your life, not your life work around school."  That will always stick with me.

Don't be a Slacker
That being said, don't totally neglect school.  Make memories with your friends and take time for yourself, but remember, you've gotten through kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, freshman through junior year--don't stop second semester of senior year!  Finish strong.  You'll be happy you did when those IB/AP scores come back and you get out of a bunch of general classes in college...believe me, I'm thankful already.

Take Lots of Pictures
Take first day of school pictures with your friends...and last day of school pictures.  Take selfies at graduation practice.  Take pictures in the theatre on random days.  Take pictures of your math class or your Spanish class or your history class. Get pictures at banquets and at lunch.  Get pictures with everyone.  Once again, you'll be happy you did.  I am in the process of picking out pictures to hang in my dorm, and I'm going to have like hundreds from senior year alone...I am 100% ok with that.  You'll have lots of reminders to keep close to you.

Branch Out
I got to be good friends with a ton of people in the IB program my senior year--I felt pretty close to everyone.  And I am so thankful I expanded my friend group in that way.  But even then, I got to senior trip in April and met a bunch of people who I'd smile at in the hallway but never really talked to.  Once again, everyone is doing something cool.  Don't get to spring and realize that you didn't really meet as many people as you could have.  Trust me, you'll regret it.  Senior trip made me bond in a new way with the whole senior class, and I truly wish I had gotten closer to so many people.

Don't Wish It Away
"Oh, I won't!" you tell me, as I told many people.  But you will.  You'll wish it away when homework overloads you.  You'll wish it away as college plans become real and very exciting.  You'll wish it away when your teachers don't seem to get that "senioritis" is a very real thing.  You'll wish it away when the underclassmen are acting stupid (the same way you did three years ago).  You'll wish it away when you're having an awful day (and I had a lot of those...they happen...maybe a lot).  But in those moments, look around at your school, your classmates, your teachers, your sports team, your choir, your theatre group, your club...and remember that you only have a limited number of days with them.  Because all of a sudden you'll be sitting outside on the summer night that is "the first school night" for everyone else and realize that you blinked.  You looked ahead to college and all of a sudden it wasn't a year away, it is a week away.  Many of your classmates are headed away, your teachers are headed back where you aren't, your choir or sports team or theatre group is continuing on...and you aren't there.  I'm sure it'll only get realer for me from here, but it's very weird.  I am SO SO SO excited for college and everything that is ahead, but I do wish I had savored the moments that are now only memories.  I'm leaving it behind, carrying it in my heart, and I can't wait to come back and see how my school has thrived...how my underclassmen have thrived.  But don't wish it away.  I promise, the time will pass...you'll get to graduation faster than you can even fathom.  Enjoy today.  Enjoy it.  Enjoy it.  Enjoy it.

Love,
Erin, Creek Class of '15

TC IB Class of 2015

Honor Roll

I graduated almost two months ago from high school--seventh in my class, member of every academic society my school offered, highly involved in clubs, and a recipient of the International Baccalaureate Diploma.  I was involved and motivated, with a high GPA and ACT.  Yet, here I am sitting at a laptop, a month away from going off to college with a great scholarship, feeling ill-prepared for life ahead--feeling as though the public education system has failed me.

I'll be honest, I am probably more prepared than most, because the International Baccalaureate Program did provide me with ample writing skills and presentation/people skills for life, and I am very grateful for that because I think that is more than most have available to them.  That being said, I am sitting here, applying for an on-campus job, clueless as to how to write a cover letter.  I don't know how to do that, pay taxes--heck, I was never even taught how to write a check.  Now, I am fortunate to have parents who are more than willing to help me, but I realize that this isn't the case for everyone.

I feel as though the education system failed me.

I had wonderful teachers who really wanted to help students become the best humans that we could become.  My school has a policy in place to try to make its students "college and career ready," but these goals have been made impossible by the focus on testing and rankings.  Students become defined by numbers, and while these numbers may test the ability of a school to relay information to students, they do not give a full picture to the educational success of the students, that hinges not only on the academic success, but also on the emotional success and team-building skills that students gain.

Going out into the world is a scary thing--well prepared or not.  I only hope that students, teachers, and school officials can work together to find a happy medium for gauging and creating success.  Because it is only when the emphasis is put on overall success for individual young people in life as a whole that growth happens that affects not only standardized testing scores, but all-around growth as humans.