June 21, 2021
During my sophomore year, I decided to take a leap of faith by contributing my artwork to The Lighthouse. The following year, I officially joined the journalism program where I was able to express myself through both words and art. Now, I am able to look back on all my assignments and watch how abstract thoughts materialized on both print and screen.
As I reminisce about my time in LHS, I can’t help but realize journalism has been a major reason for my success in high school. Journalism helped me gain confidence when speaking to others (all thanks to awkward interviews) and even got me into the habit of editing all my work. Now I can look back on all my past work and know that journalism class is where I developed the precision and attention to detail necessary to become an excellent student, artist and writer.
I remember the countless hours typing aimlessly at my desk trying to write the perfect lead. Moreover, I will forever be scarred by the time I accidentally deleted my first-ever animation and had to start all over because I had not saved anything. Since then, I have ALWAYS made sure to save all my files and even back them up because I think the iCloud gods have something against me.
This year has proven to be anything but traditional. Nowadays, I nostalgically remember opening the latest edition of the newspaper and looking around to see what students were drawn to reading. Covid-19 and The Lighthouse adviser Ms. Pastor’s leave of absence made this year especially challenging. However, despite having to get used to new routines, The Lighthouse team demonstrated perseverance.
Now I can look back on all my past work and know that journalism class is where I developed the precision and attention to detail necessary to become an excellent student, artist and writer.
Although I can say journalism has prepared me for so much in life, there was one thing it couldn’t prepare me for: choosing a college. The whole process proved to be so daunting, and there were a lot of factors that came into play as I was deciding where to apply and what school to attend.
With the help of teachers including Ms. Pastor, science teacher Ms. Manzella and my guidance counselor Mrs. Stacy (all of whom I thank tremendously because they were all kind enough to write me a letter of recommendation), I was able to get into many of my top choice schools.
After weeks of discussions with my parents and drawing up pros and cons lists for each prospective school, I finally came to a decision. In the fall, I will be attending Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts as a bioengineering major. I hope all of my experiences as a Golden Bear will allow me to smoothly transition into a thriving undergraduate Husky. The next phase of my life will surely test my grit and ability, but I look forward to it.
