Bittersweet Ending

Sitting down and writing this leaves a bittersweet taste in my mouth. It means my days of high school are coming to an end as are my six years at Benilde-St. Margaret’s. However, through my six years I have had plenty of occurrences in which I learned something––not necessarily school related––but equally as important, whether it be from a personal experience or from other classmates, teachers, or friends.

The first piece of advice I have is probably one of the more crucial ones: Join loads of clubs your freshman year. While this may seem like a daunting task, joining and attending events in the beginning of your high school career allows you the opportunity to discover what you truly are interested in and enjoy all while presenting the possibility to continue in said activities and hopefully take leadership positions and roles as a multi-year member. Through that, you can eliminate other clubs and activities that you may be in, but don’t actually enjoy, freeing up more time for the things you take pleasure in.

The second piece is while athletics are important and hold a high standard within BSM, don’t automatically say no to “academic sports.” During my years at BSM I have played a myriad of sports: soccer, basketball, golf, track and field, and others, but if I’m going to be completely honest, I have learned more about myself as an individual and acquired more skills that will undoubtedly help me in my future through my participation in “academic sports.” I don’t mean to hate on sports or shed a negative light on them––they are an important part of BSM culture and will forever hold a soft spot in my heart––but through participating in speech, Mock Trial, and a brief stint in debate, I have learned many things and made relationships not only with fellow students but adults that I will carry over into my future. I’m not suggesting you quit all your sports or swear them off forever, but consider trying your hand at debate, speech, Knowledge Bowl, or Mock Trial because who knows what you’ll learn or who you will meet.

Thirdly, build relationships with your teachers. Saying hello in the hallway, or thank you on your way out their classroom is always nice, but take the extra step and ask about their weekend, find something that you share a common interest in and build relationships with them. I’ve been lucky enough to get to know many teachers throughout my time here and have come to love hearing about how Ms. Kern’s kids are doing, Ms. Dominguez’s fashion radar, or how Ms. Overbo’s weekend was. The teachers here have immense knowledge, not just about school, but about life.

Fourthly, join the Knight Errant. No, I am not being paid to say this, nor will I earn extra points. I truly want you to know that joining the Knight Errant was one of the best decisions I made throughout high school. When you sign up for a class, whether it be Journalistic Writing, Photojournalism, Video Journalism, or Graphic Design, you are entering the Knight Errant family and one of the best communities you will be a part of. Under the wonderful leadership of our advisors and editors, along with other members, you will without a doubt become better in whichever medium you choose and learn more about what is happening within the BSM community, which is never a bad thing.

The final piece of advice that I will leave you with is academics are important but because you attend BSM you probably already know that. With your time at BSM, it’s more likely than not that you will have to make decisions whether to focus on your homework or study for some test or hang out with friends. My advice is make friends with people you have in your classes. It’s always nice to have someone in a class that you can call up and ask if they want to get together to study for AP Euro, or have a go-to group whenever that time comes around. Within your academic career, you will have had to a great extent just about every person in your grade within one of your classes. Find people within your individual classes and befriend them. A study group never hurt no one.

My hope is that by reading this you will have a little better grasp on what is high school. If you take anything away from this article––enjoy highschool, enjoy friends, enjoy your activities, enjoy your teachers, and as cliché as it sounds: buckle up for the ride.