For the past four years, seniors have shared laughs, shed tears, and experienced good and bad memories in their years of high school. For some, it just felt like yesterday that they entered the corridors of high school for the first time, now they are about to walk across the stage in their cap and gown and break the invisible threshold of school and the ‘real world.’ High school could be described as a roller coaster, filled with ups and downs. With all the bad memories that come with high school, there is an equal amount of good ones that accompany it.

High school is looked upon as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It holds many monumental moments in a students life such as: Prom, Friday Night Lights, and Homecoming. Heading into high school might seem like a blessing to get out of middle school, but for some it was the exact opposite. For senior, Diego Rubio, high school was a nightmare dressed like a daydream.

“I thought high school was going to be all rainbows and so much better than middle school, but I have never wanted to leave a place so bad. Though I am going to miss seeing my friends, I am definitely not going to miss the workload and some things that come with high school overall,” said Rubio.

Freshmen are stereo-typically looked upon as ‘fresh meat.’ They don’t know what to do, similar to a new cub thrown into the jungle. Freshmen enter the world of high school, which is a sea full of sharks and they all smell blood. Some seniors would do anything to redo their freshman year and to come into high school with the knowledge that they have now. For senior, Derrick Carey, his priorities are something he wishes he had in check before entering the jungle.

“I wish I could have gotten my priorities and organization straight. Whenever I first came into high school I was thinking it was going to be easy and that I could handle it, but that wasn’t the case. I was bombarded with work and responsibilities year after year and if I could redo my mindset, I would,” said Carey.

Why see someone else make the same mistake as one’s past self? For incoming freshmen, seniors sometimes help them understand how to get their way around and find their classes. Seniors were once in their position and it was just as hard to find their way around on the first day of school. For senior, Rory Rucker, living up to set expectations is a facade incoming freshmen should not abide by.

“One piece of advice I would give to incoming freshmen is not to abide by societal expectations. If you have your own goals for yourself, that’s good, but do not conform to somebody’s expectations for you, because you might buckle under pressure and become ultimately stressed and you don’t want that,” said Rucker.

With high school containing four years, there is going to be a certain year that is the favorite. Freshman year is when a student is getting used to the new experiences. While senior year is when a student is getting ready to enter college life. For senior, Alexus Rockin, senior year was by far the peak of his high school career.

“Senior year was probably my favorite year. I moved schools from junior to senior year, so I was expecting this year not to be so good, but it ended up being my favorite year. I made some good friends and I had some nice classes and I wouldn’t change it,” said Rockin.

Graduation is around the corner and seniors will soon be leaving high school for good. They have a major decision to make, to either continue their education in college or enter the ‘real world.’ If they choose college, they have a decision of choosing what college and major they want to pursue. For senior, Ella Hernandez, she is as ready as she can be for what comes next.

“At this point, school has prepared me immensely for what is to come and I am as ready as I could be. I am going to college so it is another four years in school, but the difference is I am more in the real world than I was in high school. I am ready to take on the world,” said Hernandez.

When push comes to shove, high school may or may not have been the peak of students’ life. Some never know what they have until it’s gone and high school is one of those things. Overall, throughout the ups and downs of high school, as one chapter of a student’s life comes to a close, another one begins.