Matt Wotus
Features Editor
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From Left to Right: Nahiyan, Lange, Madrid, Mehta, and
myself at the Louvre. |
Fourth quarter seniors – the words all high school students can’t wait to hear. Forty-five days of high school left. Graduation is rapidly approaching. “Senioritis” is in full swing, and college is right around the corner. By this time, most seniors can’t wait to get out of high school. I was the same way. I couldn’t wait to leave this place, to get away from almost everyone, and to move on. I have countdown apps on my phone showing me how many days there are until graduation (58), as well as move-in day at UNC (123). However, my trip to France over spring break with 13 other Apex students made me pause for a moment. Even though I’m reluctant to admit it now, I will miss aspects of high school. Yes, really.
As kids, we complain a lot. We can’t wait to grow. We’re tired of being kids and being on a leash by either our parents or teachers, and we want to be free. Now that I am only two months away from graduation, let me tell you something: I wish I could be a kid again.
The problem here is that we didn’t and frequently don’t live in the moment. Before you know it, the moment is gone. Before you know it, you will have graduated from high school and college and entered the real world. From the outside looking in, the real world looks scary. I’m sure every person who graduates from high school and college shares these feelings of fear.
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From Left to Right:
Myself, Madrid, and
Lange at the Louvre. |
There is not just a fear factor, but the thought of leaving childhood friends. Most everyone will be going their separate ways at summer’s end. Maybe a few friends are going to the same college as you, but for the most part, you won’t see 90 percent of your graduating class again. Although I plan on keeping in touch with my close friends who aren’t going to college with me, it’s still sad. Your friends in high school grow up with you, and they definitely play a part in shaping you. Luckily, most of my closest friends are either going to college with me or in North Carolina. And yes, we do have social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to stay in touch. However, that last summer night we spend together before we go our separate ways will involve some of the hardest goodbyes I will ever have to say. Yes, I may see them during breaks and I can text them every day, but it’s not quite the same as seeing and interacting with them on a daily basis.
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From Left to Right: Nahiyan, Lange, myself, Broughton, and
Diberto at Parc Astérix in Plailly, France. |
There’s also the fact that some of my friends are not seniors. On the trip to France, I bonded so much with almost our entire group. Among them are juniors Abby Broughton and Sanjida Nahiyan and sophomores Caroline Diberto and Kelly Plath. I barely knew them before the trip, and now I feel like we’ve known each other forever. The three non-seniors I will miss the most, however, are sophomores Alex Lange, Nick Madrid, and Trevor Mehta. I met all three last semester in French III, and we became good friends (especially me and Nick), but we really bonded in France. After the short time we spent abroad, these guys now feel like brothers to me. It makes me sick to my stomach that I’ll be moving on to another school while these guys will remain at Apex. I will do everything on my part to stay in touch and get together during summers and breaks.
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From Left to Right: Myself, Diberto, and Plath at the Palace
of Versailles. |
This just goes to show that we take our time in high school for granted. Coming in, four years seems like an eternity, but it really isn’t. Maturing and making life decisions every day makes the time fly by. I still remember my first day of high school; scared and nervous I walked into my first high school class. Since then, I have met hundreds of people, made thousands of memories, and planned my future. I am excited to be going to my dream college, as my entire high school career was dedicated to becoming a Tar Heel. When I found out I was accepted into UNC, I started counting down the days until move-in day.
While I do want that day to come, I want these last few months to take their time. I want to savor the last days in the place where I grew up, made all my friends, and have endless memories. If you take one thing out of this, let it be to savor your time in high school and live in the moment, because it’s the little moments that define what you will become.
