Past reflections, future hopes

Four years of high school are filled with happiness, anger, sadness and every other emotion that your hormones are causing. Since another year is about to end at Marysville High School, we pause to reflect about the past.

High school can be categorized as a learning and social experience. Most individuals somehow transform each year and mature.

From freshman year to senior year, it is strange to look back and see the person you have become. The problems encountered are nothing more than just a reflection of the many obstacles each senior has experienced.

At one point in time, you remember yourself according to labels, such as the individual who broke the rules because they were stubborn, or the shy student in the back who tries to remain unnoticed. After four years, you relinquish your label and can be defined as the person you are and want to be.

Edgar Lopez, a senior at Marysville High School, said, "I've become way more outgoing and a leader in certain situations. I take pride in my ability to be able to take control of situations quickly and organize a solution under any given circumstances. I've been thanked for my help in many situations, but I take it as not a big deal because my interest is to give the best possible outcome to those involved."

As for me, I was shy and could not talk to anyone because I did not know how to say the simple word "hello." I could not believe how hard it was to just say that one word. But I wanted to express myself. Like Edgar, I have also become a more confident individual.

During the 2010 high school exit exam, the sophomores — who are now seniors — wrote an essay about trying to do something that you were unable to do, but then something better happened instead.

The prompt said that even if you cannot do something, there are other opportunities out there. The prompt also told us to move forward and to not dwell on the past.

Fellow senior Tommy Lor said, "During school, my friend, Justin, was my support, and without him, I did not know what to do. I saw him as a picture that I wanted to paint. However, everything changed the day he left. It struck me that I will lose my only support and the only person who I wanted to be like. Even though he left, I have discovered my own identity now. I stepped out of my comfort zone to be involved with the school and am proud that I have become a stronger person because of his absence."

As a freshman, you can afford to make mistakes because someone is always there to correct them. Now, every senior faces the reality of making their own decisions. High school will always be the one thing you will look back on. At MHS, I believe every student has a mindset about who they want to be. We can achieve anything through hard work and perseverance.

Courtney Ngai is a senior at Marysville High School. This is her final column for the Education section.