They say high school prepares you for life. Well, I graduated yesterday and I’m still terrified of my future. Technically I didn’t graduate yet because I still don’t have my diplomas and I have another two weeks or so of french. But still, I wore the cap and gown and I walked across the stage. It was a lot more underwhelming than I thought it would be, but I guess that’s because I walked in front of about twenty people rather than hundreds of them. After it was over, everyone I talked to asked me one question: “So how does it feel to graduate from high school?” After being asked this question about twenty five times, I started to reflect. How was high school? When I think of the ups and downs of high school, my mind is drawn to the negative. I certainly had my fair share of downs. I fought with (and lost) friends, I struggled with keeping on top of my school work and extracurricular activities, I argued with family and I battled some mental health and confidence issues. I had bad teachers. I let people down, I let myself down. There have been times when I have been a shitty friend and student. I worked through a lot of negatives. There were days where I wouldn’t have a place to eat so I’d walk around until I found someone I knew. There were fights where I walked away as I thought about punching my best friend in the face. There were times that I felt really self-critical and times that I felt self-conscious over nothing and proceeded to feel guilty about that. But haven’t we all? Isn’t that what high school is about? The more I think about the bad experiences, the more I come up with reasons why those led to better ones. I grew through every single one of those experiences. Good and bad. I learned about toxicity and what that means for me. I learned about what kind of person I am, and the kind of people I like to have in my life. I gained a best friend for life. I grew closer with my parents and my brother. I became a better friend. I am becoming a better student. I am learning how to take care of myself. I’m learning how to bite off an amount that I can chew. I dealt with bad teachers, classmates and co-workers, the way I will have to for the rest of my life. I learned how to hold my tongue and think before I speak. I learned that sometimes the truth hurts. Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth and that’s okay. You can’t control people. And that’s okay. I learned, I grew, I matured. The person I am on my way to becoming, is born from these high school experiences, through trial and error. There’s no way to teach this. There’s no way for you to study and learn this without actually doing it. You have to go to school, be a kid. You’ll make mistakes, you’ll be an idiot, you’ll get in trouble. That’s life. Maybe high school academics don’t prepare you for life, maybe it’s that not so obvious personal development, that secret “becoming a better human” that does. When I think about all of this, of how prepared I actually am and the people I’ll have in my corner, the future doesn’t look so scary after all.
Nevada J
15 Comments
Emily
6/9/2021 10:39:26 am
I loved this Nevada because I can so relate ! I got asked the same question again and again yesterday and I couldn’t think of a good answer as a response . I for sure did not peak in high school but like you it’s given me a place to grow and mature, I learned how to handle things through as you said trial and error . That’s why I believe public school is so important as you wouldn’t learn that through homeschooling
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Kaya
6/9/2021 11:53:42 am
I have thought about that question before, even though I’m not a senior yet, but I still feel pressure about knowing what I want to do with my life. It’s an important yet scary question. And I totally agree that’s school sometimes makes me feel not prepared at all, and I always seem to ask myself: “what the heck am I doing?” But high school does help us find friendships and great bonds, but it also helps us learn from hardships and drama. So in a way, high school does help us prepare for the world. And yet again, it sometimes does not.
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kaysey
6/9/2021 12:41:07 pm
We made it! Im so happy for all the grads lol yay. All your points are spot on accurate. Highschool is a place for learning right, so make mistakes, learn and have fun. I try not to take things too seriously, especially with this past year life changes quickly. U have ur arguments, u cry, u laugh, and maybe it feels like a bad day everyday, but I think those experiences make u stronger and teach u so much about urself. Leaving highschool is scary, but the past 5 years was a time i will forever be grateful i lived through.
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Brianna S
6/9/2021 01:30:31 pm
I totally agree with you on this, when I’m asked how high school was I typically draw to all the negative things that happened. It’s a really good thing to remember that through all the toxic relationships and hard times, it was new opportunities to learn and grow. Loved this blog!
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Abbey S
6/9/2021 01:33:00 pm
Hey Nevada! I really liked your blog topic and I really relate to it. High school is all about learning experiences and making mistakes. I have definitely made my fair share of mistakes whether that's academically or in relationships with friends and family. Looking back at mistakes I've made, I know that I wouldn't make the same mistakes given the choice and to me that's growth. Everyone has a long way to go and there's always room to grow but high school is a great opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them. On top of that your blog was well written and made a lot of great points. Thank you!
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Caiti Scales
6/9/2021 01:36:11 pm
I definitely agree that there have been a lot of ups and downs in high school and I'd be happy to say that I think they have all helped me become a stronger better version of myself. I'm happy high school is over and even though I'm worried about the future I think that it will probably be okay.
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Jenna
6/9/2021 01:41:10 pm
This blog is so raw and honest and I know for sure a lot of us can relate. it is important to reflect on the bad times just as often as the good ones to learn and grow to a better version of ourselves. Of course we can't change the past and looking back at our high school experience is quite overwhelming now that it is all coming to an end so abruptly. I mean we're done now we made it and we should all be excited for what is to come.
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Devon
6/9/2021 01:41:35 pm
Thank you for sharing Nevada! Looking back over the past 5 years, it's definitely easier to fixate and remember the "bad" moments we went through, I would guess because there is usually so much emotion attached to those experiences. While the goal of high school is to prepare us academically for the future, I think you said it best when you added that maybe it's really the personal developement we gain from our experiences that help shape us into people that can take on the adult world, not our academic grades.
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Taylor
6/9/2021 01:41:45 pm
Even though I'm not graduating until next year I've thought about this a lot too. This is very relatable because I've gone through many of the things you mentioned. High school is such a good learning experience. However, I'm definitely still scared of the future and what life looks like after high school.
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Austin
6/9/2021 02:32:29 pm
This was a great blog to read. We spent years since we found out about high school in elementary school. I remember thinking it would take forever to graduate and be done with school. Each year I waited with excitement, I graduate next year and now I don't want to graduate in a sense. when you graduate you say goodbye to all the teachers and friends you came across. and you say hello to change and new things like college or a new job, and even new people to meet everyday. graduating gives a great sendoff as you walk on that stage with people watching you as you remember everything from the past few years. Covid really screwed it all up and I haven't graduated but I know because of Covid its not going to be the same.
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Avery
6/9/2021 03:12:04 pm
Nevada, I really loved reading this blog. Its so true and i enjoyed how it was a reflection, really makes me think back too. I liked the way you weighed out both the negatives and the positives instead of only focusing on one.
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Tyler L
6/10/2021 06:57:55 pm
First of all congrats! and I completley agree with this you hit every possible point I could think of when coming to this topic. That's something in life that takes a long time for people to learn and some still never learn it because they haven't been in that kind of situation. To be able to aknoledge what's going on and to make a change is very important because it'll just hrut you until you end up doing something about it. Even though it may involve cutting certain people out all that matters in the end is that you surround yourself by the people who aren't toxic and who support you with everything.
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Kiana Birk
6/16/2021 10:18:05 pm
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Anooj
9/16/2022 02:12:10 pm
Graduating this year and high school in a new area is weird.
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anna
9/28/2023 02:12:56 pm
this is one of the truest things ive read in a long time. I have lost friends and fought and been a horrible student at times in highschool. I have learnt who i think i am to this day because of the experiences that have happened. High school hasnt been easy but not everything in the future will be either. All we can do it growand live in our current lives.
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