My senior year is going very well. I’m doing good physically, mentally and emotionally, I have good grades and good people by my side. I got into my top choice schools and even some scholarships. So overall, I’m doing well in school. Many say that you’ll lose friends when you hit your senior year, and I’ve found this to be true. I lost people that I thought would never leave my side. I learned that not everyone you meet in high school is real. Often, those closest to you can do the most damage. I’ve had fake friends and toxic influences almost my entire life. I often don’t let people get very close because I don’t trust easily. The friends you have now may not be your friends in the future, but it is good to establish and maintain healthy bonds with the right people to ensure your well being as well as that of others. Sometimes, it’s best to just do you. Personally, I don’t care as much about being popular or having an abundance of friends, rather focusing on my goals and own personal self betterment.

My high school experience wasn’t perfect, but that’s okay; through my education I learned countless valuable lessons. I learned that high school isn’t about being popular or being the prettiest girl in school or having a lot of friends. It’s about learning and growing and becoming an overall better person. It’s certainly not about pleasing everyone you meet, or living up to others’ expectations of you. I look back at my freshman year and regret a lot, but this even says a lot about the growth my high school experience has caused. I had many setbacks during that year, and I struggled with school and fitting in. I truly never felt accepted by people because I struggled with self-love and accepting myself. I felt alone and scared, but  thankfully I had people who helped me pull through. My high school experience wasn’t what I expected it to be but what matters to me most is that I learned and grew up into someone different than from my freshman year. The person I am today is the person that my high school experience has formed.