If I could go back to freshman year with all the knowledge I have, I’d take things at a more lax pace. I may or may not be your typical high school loser, but I definitely feel like I’ve missed out on certain aspects of my high school career.
First, having the foresight I have now, I’d tone down my academic vigor and take it easy freshman year. I wish that when the upperclassmen at orientation told me that freshman year wouldn’t be a big deal, that I took that advice to heart. Too many nights I spent mulling over the likelihood of an A in my AS English class or crying over the sudden influx of Japanese homework, only to wind up praying to every omniscient God in the universe that I would score a D on my AP Biology test as a senior. I have always been an above-average student, so taking academics seriously came naturally to me, but I wish I had been kinder to myself—that I had realized my journey still had a long way to go, and that I took the time to join a sport or a club I was generally interested in.
On that same note, my second regret is not committing to an afterschool sport or club. Having been part of numerous clubs and spending various amounts of time in each (Dragon Team for a week, Dragon Boat for a month, Red Cross for three days, Christian Club every time there was free pizza and Interact for another week), I can definitely say that I wish I had the perseverance to stick with a club for at least a year. More often than not I observed friends around me talking about club activities and events, and I felt a lingering sense of regret that I had nothing to belong to. Likewise, I was part of various sports teams for longer durations of time before eventually quitting. I ran cross country for a solid month, participated in track when the season started for the remainder of the year, rejoined track team for the following season sophomore year and joined swim team for the entire season until the last week before PALs due to a concussion (which wasn’t my fault, but still regrettable). I’d always admired people whose efforts in sports made them stand out in competitions, practices and meets. Of course I never aspired to compete on the same level as they did, but in retrospect, I wished their determination rubbed off on me and kept me from ditching practice constantly.
My overall feelings after four years of high school are slightly tinged with regret, but the community at Mills made my experience worthwhile. I honestly thought that high school would’ve been a more ruthless place, and I’m glad to say that as a Mills senior, I’ve never really encountered serious cases or have been bullied myself. My biggest regrets may be something generic that you might hear from someone who wasn’t at the apex of the schoolyard food chain. And while my advice gets passed around a lot by past alumni, parents, teachers, random adults on the streets, I think it’s something that oncoming students should take to heart: just live in the moment and plan aspect of your life as much as you can. Freshman year is more of a trial period, while sophomore and junior years are the years that matter. Senior year is like an awkward grace period where teachers and counselors convince you to keep working hard, but you slack off anyway—at least for me.
High school is more about the transition into adulthood. The intrinsic metamorphosis of your personality, mindset, and aspirations that occurs somewhere around junior to senior year is something that is so quintessential to laying the foundation of the person you want to become in the future—but in my opinion—is greatly overlooked. I feel as if I am a completely different person now compared to when I was a freshman or sophomore. In the end, it’s more important to decide for yourself whether you want to concentrate on academics or your personal life, but I’d recommend learning to drive as soon as possible and working a part-time job as must-dos during your high school career.
