June 22, 2021
When people would tell me “high school flies by,” I never imagined it would be this fast, and I also never imagined that I would be spending my last year attending classes through a screen. Regardless, I wouldn’t change my high school experience for anything. I made new friends, learned new things and did my best to get ready for the next four years of school.
Coming into Lyndhurst as a freshman, I was terrified. I knew all these people had grown up around each other and here I was, a newbie.
Freshman year was hard because I was trying to catch up on schoolwork that I was a month late on, and making new friends was one of the most mentally draining things I had to do, but I did it. With a little effort, I made friends whom I love and formed connections with new people and interests. Prior to high school, I was never able to talk to people easily, but that changed over the past four years.
As a high schooler, I was very involved in LHS’ sports teams. Sports are one of the best activities a student could spend their time doing (besides journalism). Being a three-sport athlete helped me grow as a person and expand my social skills.
With a little effort, I made friends whom I love and formed connections with new people and interests.
Last year, I finally decided to put my love of writing to the test and enroll in journalism. I didn’t realize how much work goes into writing an article, editing it and making sure it is perfect before it is published in the newspaper. However, slowly but surely, I understood what I needed to do, and writing just became more and more fun. The one thing I regret about high school was not joining journalism my freshman year.
Before I go, I want to thank the people who made high school such a great experience. Class of 2020 graduate Victoria Niedbal, my sister Rebecca Paes, FB10 and all my other friends from Lyndhurst. I would also like to thank the amazing faculty who were always by my side. Ms. DiMaggio, Coach Hykey, Mr. Newman, Coach Tessalone, Coach Tuero, Coach Vahalla and Mrs. Weckstein, thank you for teaching me in the best way possible and helping me understand the realities of growing up. I would also like to give a special thank you to The Lighthouse adviser Ms. Pastor. You made my journalism experience amazing and always pushed me to be my best.
People say you will eventually forget about high school, but I don’t think I will. Don’t get me wrong, I will definitely continue to meet new people and move on with my life, but I will never lose my connection to LHS.
This is where I made my first real friends, won my first real track race and went to my first real party. I genuinely don’t believe these memories could just fade away. Then again, what do I know? I’m only 18.
