Features Editor
Forty-five seemingly short months ago, I, along with many others, walked into Apex High as freshmen, uncertain about what the next four years held in store. Now just over two weeks from graduation, I see that high school brought a lot more to the table than what we give it credit for.
Honestly, these four years flew
by. I distinctly remember walking into my first high school class, English I.
That feels like it could be just yesterday. Sure, there are times when school
couldn't have gone more slowly, as we all had classes we hated. In reality,
when looking at the big picture, these four years are just a small portion of
your life. Five years from now, it won’t matter what you wore, what you said,
or what you looked like in high school. The only thing that matters is that
you’re happy with yourself. As I said, high school is just a small portion of
your life, but it’s where we develop an identity. For myself, I sure did a lot
of growing up in high school. I developed an identity, made a name for myself,
and created so many amazing memories that will last a lifetime.
Many students at Apex don’t know
that we have a newspaper, or don’t know how to get to our blog. If you venture
out to the Apex website and click on the tab in the top right corner, you will
in fact end up on our website. Freshman year, I knew we had a newspaper, mainly
because print copies were still being distributed. I also knew journalism was a
possible career path for me, so I applied to be on the staff, and I am so lucky
to have been accepted. Three years later, as I sit here writing this, my
farewell column, I know that applying was one of the best decisions of my life.
The invaluable lessons I learned while part of Legacy far exceed anything I could’ve imagined, and none of this
would have been possible without our advisor, Mrs. Knall. Not only did she give
me a chance on the staff, she gave me a chance to lead. She gave me a chance as
Sports Editor, News Editor, and eventually, Editor-in-Chief. Nothing I have
accomplished these past years, whether it be writing my first column or taking
control of the paper, would have been possible without her. I hope as she reads
over this she understands how grateful I am for her help over the years,
because I don’t think I would’ve gotten into UNC without it.
And then there are the memories
that don’t involve school. My group of friends is about as amazing a group as I
could’ve wished for, and they have made senior year one I won’t ever forget.
The movie nights every weekend, the campouts, and of course prom, which I had
the pleasure of attending with my amazing friend Samantha, have left me with
thousands of unbelievable memories, and we still have a summer together before
we embark on the next stage of our lives. Of course there was my spring break
adventures in France, but I touched on that in my last column. Nonetheless, I am
fortunate to be able to spend the next four years with a few of my friends at
UNC, but most will not be attending the same college with me. I am going to
miss every single one of them, and saying goodbye this summer will be the
hardest thing I ever have to do. I’ve grown up around them, and they’ve
definitely played a part in how I’ve turned out. I hope when they all read
this, they understand how much every single one of them means to me. This is
for you guys, Scott Epplin, Sarah Patrick, Jade Skinner, Alexandra Tolzman,
Samantha Pompeo, Laurel Timko, Sid Shankar, Kyle Malone, Webb Chawla and
everyone else: Every single one of you means so much to me, and it pains me
that all of us aren’t going to the same college next year, but I know we will
remain friends for as long as possible. Let’s make this a summer to remember.
In my last column, I had everyone
in tears by this point. I honestly did not mean to do that, but I take it as a
compliment. Apparently I have a way with words. To quote Dr. Seuss, “Don’t cry
because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Anyway, I now speak to the
entire Apex High School Class of 2013: We made it guys.
