Lights, camera, holiday action
December has finally arrived on stage. Cue the Christmas lights, hot chocolate and all of the sappy Christmas romance movies on Lifetime. Following the first act will be a small intermission for bargain shopping at the mall, and immediately proceeding will be the annual family nine-hour drive to Grandma's house (little sisters and dog included).
No matter how you spend the holidays, for high school students, the break comes with a bittersweet taste. We can thank end-of-term finals for that. Not only do we have the usual homework load on our hands, but we also have the stress and worries of passing our finals.
For seniors, this can be especially of concern because it is our last chance to achieve a passing grade. We do not have any re-do button. It comes with a sense of relief, however, knowing that we are halfway done with the school year, and graduation is that much closer. Hopefully, we all make it to the stage.
Along with the expected chaos of December, Live Oak High School has officially transitioned into a complete construction disruption. Fences, ropes, new routes to classes, torn-up pavement and much noise are the wonderful additions to the students' and staff's daily lives. One can not help but to be distracted. The plan is for the majority of the demolition to be conducted during the hiatus.
LOHS is one of the few schools is Sutter County that takes an extended three-week winter break. Many of us are fortunate enough to be able to visit relatives in distant places.
Sophomore Natasha Tica said that for her break, she, "will be going to a huge Serbian festival in Los Angeles with some of my cousins. There will be tons of food, music and Serbian culture."
Others, like senior Manpreet Dhoot, said that they like to stay home during the break. "We just relax at home, eat and enjoy time off from our responsibilities," she said.
To upstage the production of the holidays, the drama department will present its semester play "Who's Dying to be a Millionaire?" this week and next Monday at 7:00 p.m. We would like to invite all of the community to be present, and tickets will be sold at the door.
No matter who you are, December is a month full of endings and new beginnings. Some people revel in tradition, religious celebrations or shared family togetherness. As for those of us at Live Oak High School, we will be doing it all while looking forward to the new stage ahead of us. So here's the curtain call to 2009, and let's begin Act I of 2010.
Melissa Anderson is a senior at Live Oak High School. Her column appears about every sixth week in Education.
