Bottom of the 12th: Royal Reflection

Perhaps it's the fact that memorial weekend is this weekend, or maybe it's because I'm able to finally say it's the last Friday or last Monday of high school, but I have begun to reminisce about the experiences of my pre-collegiate schooling.

When I think back to my first year at high school, I remember being intimidated by how large it was and how many people were there. I rode the bus to school every day because neither I nor my friends had cars yet and would move from class to class without making any stops to chat in the hallway. I was too afraid of being late to be social in between classes.

I spent my evenings at home making sure all my homework was done and that I was prepared for the next day’s educational opportunities. I hung out with friends on the weekends and met many kids that had attended rather than , which I attended.

I remember the first day at lunch, trying to find friends to sit with. It was the first time lunch wasn’t divided by grade level, and I felt lost. Fortunately, I was able to find friends to sit with, and I enjoyed the company and new, exciting lunch options.

I saw one of the most dominant high school basketball teams in state history crush opposing teams on its way to an undefeated season and state championship. I would be awestruck when I saw the likes of Royce White, Mike Broghammer or Trent Lockett in the hallways.

In my junior year I began to become more accustomed to high school life. I began meeting up with my friends in between classes, now aware of how much time I had during passing time. I spent less and less time worrying about my schoolwork and more and more time exploring my own interests.

I was more interested in music and sports than I was in projects and studying. I kept up my grades but was more likely to spend a late night doing homework after spending the early evening procrastinating. I also began to pay more attention to working and making money.

I had  found the joy of being able to make money and spend it as I pleased. I became more likely to spend a weekend going to movies or a Twins game than just hanging out at a friend’s house.

As more people started to drive, I was able to get a ride to school every morning instead of riding the bus—which meant I didn’t have to wake up as early or leave school right away. I gained freedoms and realized my own abilities and interests more often than ever before.

At the end of the year I really began my extensive college preparations. I had been considering college options for awhile, but I got into the full swing of things during the second semester of junior year. My ideas about what I would study and the type of school I wanted to attend started to change and form into a small list of schools to apply to.

I watched another state basketball championship and found myself going to more games and caring more about the outcome of the games. I began to see some of the players in the hallway. Instead of being awestruck, I was more proud to be among them, and I felt cool to have interacted with a couple of them.

The lunches began their decent from exciting and delicious to mediocre and plain. The best meal, chicken tenders, along with other food items were revise, and Tater Tots were removed from the menu—much to the chagrin of my peers and I.

This year, I lost any sense of timidity. Being a senior felt like a top dog at the school. I became more vocal about taking trips to and was much more willing to take risks in school.

The lunches reached rock bottom, which only intensified my yearning for transition. I began to rearrange my priorities—placing schoolwork further down and instead investing time in relationships, extra- curricular activities and self improvement.   

I had my last cross country race and was part of a poor Southwest basketball team with a bunch of guys that lacked talent and experience.

I wrote for the Royal Page, the school newspaper, which was my first glimpse into how a newspaper runs and the type of work I could expect when I follow through with my goal of being a journalist. This helped me get the gig of writing this very column as I was able to provide past writings to prove I could handle the duties of the column.

The proudest time of my senior year—and my entire high school career—came with about a week left of third quarter. The boys basketball team had won a state title to follow up the girls state championship. I had just made my decision to attend the University of Kansas, and I was writing my column. It was as if the pinnacle of what I'm leaving behind and the revelation of where I'll be going next year were tied together by the very work I hope my education will lead to.

I got a glimpse of the good things I was leaving behind—a sort of a victory lap—and a look into the great potential ahead while doing something that I want to make a living out of.

This week I will finish up tests and my final projects before senior skip day, Memorial Day weekend and a short last week of school. After that, I have a lot to look forward to—including graduation, the liberty of summer and, perhaps most excitingly, not having to buy any meals if I can plan out graduation party visits properly.