Advice to Those in High School

I hated high school. Not in the cliché, "Oh my gosh, I hate school." But I truly did. All my friends would get dressed up, go to pep rallies, talk about the latest parties; none of it interested me, never did. Yet, freshman and sophomore year, boy, did I pretend that I loved it all. I would wear all black to our football games to match the theme, dressed up for homecoming, gauzed over how "cool" the seniors were; but deep down, I did not give a crap.

You might be reading this and thinking, "So what?" However, maybe this was just my school; but people in my grade loved my high school. (Probably not the school part, but mostly the social aspect of it all.) Raving that this is where they "peaked" and they wish they could "rewind." Honestly, when hearing this, I would think to myself that if high school is where I peaked then that's a major disappointment. If I had to rewind? I probably would drop out. Junior and senior year, I gave up on the idea of pretending to actually like school or the socializing part that came with it. The whole social scene seemed to fake to me, do you actually care if the football team wins the game? Because I sure didn't.

But, after graduating, it hit me like a brick. Even if I did not particularly like high school when I was there, I still had thousands of memories in one building with so many friends. From falling down the stairs freshmen year or getting a detention with my best friend for skipping class, those are the years when you are allowed to make mistakes. So to those in high school...

Here is my advice to keep in mind:

You will never know that amount of people in the same building again.

You will never know that amount of people in the same building again. Spending seven hours with the same people day after day for four years, you are bound to get comfortable. You get used to seeing the familiar faces and the same hallways. Once you graduate, it is nothing like that. You are lucky if you recognize one person going to class, let alone probably twenty like when I was in school.

Those from your hometown—they get it.

Those that went to high school with you most likely grew up in the same environment. They understand the quirks of your town and why you are so obsessed with your local deli. When at college, no one gets it like those in your hometown do.

Your Teachers

High school teachers are easier than college teachers. In high school, I managed to get good grades by becoming best friends with my teachers. In college, with the other sometimes fifty kids in my class, that is not really an option. I am not saying take advantage of your high school teachers while you have them, but I am kind of saying that.

If you are in high school, cherish it. Even if you hate it, really think about every last moment. In reality, you will never be at this same exact place, at this same exact time with all of these people, ever again. You might as well make the most out of the four years now. Maybe if I was forced to rewind high school, I would even go to one more football game.