My 3rd person recount of my high school experience:
She had heard the cliches from older students that high school will be the best time of your life, or that it'll fly by so quickly. But she only half believed them. Little did she know that they were mostly right. Stepping onto campus for the first time, Madison actually found her first class without trouble. She was relieved to see familiar faces in her Spanish class, faces from the junior high she attended the year prior. She also smiled at some new faces, presumably from the rivaling junior high. Madison found her seat from the seating chart, sitting next to an unfamiliar blonde who looked nice enough. Madison and the girl, Megan, would go on to become friends soon enough, comfortable with each other and sharing many laughs together.
Madison had some trouble at the beginning of that first year of high school. She took some of her first honors classes, especially biology being harder than she expected. But talks with her mother helped smooth out the crises. Madison was able to pull through and have a fun freshman year of high school. Being a bit of an introvert, Madison mostly associated with the people she already knew, people from her old elementary school and middle school. She talked to other people too but mainly kept to the familiar faces. Of course she was friendly with others who joined the conversation, but she didn't particularly take the effort to go out of her way to talk to someone new.
As the first year of high school came to an end, Madison reflected on her time spent there, on how she had three more years to go, and how she thought she had so much time left. She had enjoyed herself enough (it was nothing like the "High School Musical" movies she saw on the Disney Channel). But Madison liked where she was.
Heading into her sophomore year, it was time for Madison to take her first Advanced Placement class: world history. Madison never really enjoyed history nor was she very good at it. She did well enough to scrape by with a good grade but never excelled. The subject did not excite her, and she loathed the constant memorization and small details and countless important dates. The AP World history class did no favors for her, and the teacher was unlike any she had before. She had heard stories about Mr. Gellert's class, about its difficulty and high standards. Wanting to do well and rise to the occasion, Madison enrolled in it. Unknowingly, there she met a couple of boys who would go on to become two of her best friends. This history class would be the bane of her existence, she thought (albeit she thought the same while facing other challenges). It was jarringly engaging, intimidating, and above all, very difficult for her. Madison stumbled through the dull reading about Persian canal systems and the sacrilegious Scientific Revolution; she pored over numerous resources on the class website, taking practices tests and rereading Power Point slides. She went into class during lunch to correct her tests to glean the points back. And in the end, Madison received a 'B+' in the class for both semesters.
While not exactly relieved nor disappointed with the satisfactory grade (the first B she had ever gotten before), she accepted it because she knew she deserved it. She faced the reality of hard work paying off to a good grade; not a great grade, but merely good. Madison realized that she would face more classes like this, ones that would jostle her despite her efforts to stand resolute. She focused on her end goal: college. This was all for the next milestone, the forward step in her life's journey.
During the same year, she had another memorable, defining class: Honors English with Mrs. Danny. This teacher was also unlike any other teacher Madison had ever experienced before but in a better way. Mrs. Danny was one of the first teachers to treat Madison and the other students like real people, like responsible adults. It was refreshing and incredibly trusting of Mrs. Danny. She understood that her sophomore students started to have other obligations, and she tried to accommodate them as much as possible. Mrs. Danny was so kind and genuinely interested in her students' lives. And her class was as fun as she was truly incredible and inspirational. This class really helped Madison blossom into the beautiful flower she would turn out to be. She could express her creativity, meet new people, and have so many great memories. Madison stepped out of her shell and bonded with the people she chose to distance herself from. Mrs. Danny made learning fun!
By the end of second semester of sophomore year, Madison already realized that time in high school was sprinting by like Usain Bolt during a 100 meter dash; and it wasn't slowing down. She quickly entered junior year of high school, finally an upperclassman. An uneventful year academically, it was a time of true bonding with friends and reconnecting with her passion for painting. Madison had good friends in most of her classes and became closer after a few group projects. She started spending more time with these people outside of school and cemented a solid friendship. Still, she remained true to who she was, enjoying time to herself to browse the internet, watch Netflix, or read in bed. Madison still liked to stay home, save the energy of going out and remain on the couch instead. She would sometimes make up excuses to her friends, but she grew to just say that she didn't feel like going out; and they understood.
Madison also enrolled in the intermediate painting class that junior year. She loved to spend the class period finding inspiration, methodically planning the work, sketching the design. After lightly drawing the outline, she would get her plate, brushes, a cup of water, and a paper towel, an entire routine she would continue for every painting. She especially loved water colors and acrylic paint. She could spend ten minutes mixing colors together to find just the right shade of orange-yellow for autumn leaves. Madison would get lost in the paint, the beautiful picture; she would zone out the music and buzz from the conversations around her. She might work until the bell rang if it weren't for the teacher calling time five minutes before class let out so she could clean up. She loved the attention to detail in her art pieces, learned how to paint more freely, depending less on the sketch. Her art teacher, Del Rey, always supported her, complimented her work, and gave great advice. Madison would miss that class.
Before she knew it, summer rolled around. Madison had signed up for a trip to France and Spain that summer of 2014. And fortunately for her, some of her friends were going as well. One of her favorite teachers went as the chaperone, and she knew they would all have a great time together. Their journey to cross the Atlantic was a tumultuous one. Their flight from Florida to Spain somehow got cancelled so instead they flew up to New York City to spend the day there. Having been to New York only once before in sixth grade, Madison thoroughly enjoyed the detour back to the Big Apple even if it meant less time in Spain. She and the group walked around Central Park, Madison Square Garden, and Times Square. It was great to be back.
The day rolled by, and the next morning, she and the rest of the gang were carted off the the airport to finally fly to Barcelona. After a few days of touring, they hopped on a bus to Madrid next. One day in Madrid, the group split up for the afternoon. Madison went to the Parque del Retiro with her friends and teacher. They explored most of the park, sipped on a mojito and had a magical time. Next it was off to Paris, France. Madison remembered running up the steps of the Eiffel Tower on a (false) time crunch. And on the last night, she and the group stayed out late to watch the lights twinkle at the top of the hour. Those precious few minutes were filled with hurried pictures and long sighs of admiration. The whole trip was a truly magnificent experience that awakened Madison's wanderlust.
Senior year quickly commenced as summer came to a close. Madison didn't particularly feel like challenging herself to the fullest extent this year so she took a light course load with easy AP classes. She made sure to still do her best and push through the college application period of the first semester. She focused on her friends, reconnecting with some and losing touch with others, aware of the limited time she had left, relishing each day together. This year was the year Madison fully came out of her shell, realized her true friendships and stepped into her shoes. She had so much fun with the people around her, taking everything in stride, always aware of the few months she had left as a high school student. Sometimes she would look around at her peers and think, "I am actually going to miss you. Well, you not so much. But I'll miss it here." Her last year as a high school student ended as rapidly as it started. Nervousness, excitement, fear, anxiety, giddiness, euphoria, hysteria all melded together insider Madison's brain. She was nervous and excited about the prospect of college, fearful about the real life ahead of her, anxious about what it entailed, giddy and euphoric about starting a new life in a new town to meet new people and make new memories, and just hysteric about all of it. But looking at the people around her, she knew she wasn't alone; and she knew that they would all go on to bigger, better things. Every one of them would positively impact this world in one way or another with their ambitions of becoming a doctor or engineer or physical therapist or nurse, or vet in Madison's case. She was excited to see where they would all end up.
The dynamic character she is, Madison blossomed from the shy freshman to the graduating senior with a head full of unforgettable memories and experiences and people. She changed and grew from the person she was first entering the gates on her first day of high school. She faced and overcame what ever challenges presented themselves, which made her a stronger person. She came, she saw, she conquered. And her hero's journey continues to write itself as she moves forward in all her future endeavors.
As the first year of high school came to an end, Madison reflected on her time spent there, on how she had three more years to go, and how she thought she had so much time left. She had enjoyed herself enough (it was nothing like the "High School Musical" movies she saw on the Disney Channel). But Madison liked where she was.
Heading into her sophomore year, it was time for Madison to take her first Advanced Placement class: world history. Madison never really enjoyed history nor was she very good at it. She did well enough to scrape by with a good grade but never excelled. The subject did not excite her, and she loathed the constant memorization and small details and countless important dates. The AP World history class did no favors for her, and the teacher was unlike any she had before. She had heard stories about Mr. Gellert's class, about its difficulty and high standards. Wanting to do well and rise to the occasion, Madison enrolled in it. Unknowingly, there she met a couple of boys who would go on to become two of her best friends. This history class would be the bane of her existence, she thought (albeit she thought the same while facing other challenges). It was jarringly engaging, intimidating, and above all, very difficult for her. Madison stumbled through the dull reading about Persian canal systems and the sacrilegious Scientific Revolution; she pored over numerous resources on the class website, taking practices tests and rereading Power Point slides. She went into class during lunch to correct her tests to glean the points back. And in the end, Madison received a 'B+' in the class for both semesters.
While not exactly relieved nor disappointed with the satisfactory grade (the first B she had ever gotten before), she accepted it because she knew she deserved it. She faced the reality of hard work paying off to a good grade; not a great grade, but merely good. Madison realized that she would face more classes like this, ones that would jostle her despite her efforts to stand resolute. She focused on her end goal: college. This was all for the next milestone, the forward step in her life's journey.
During the same year, she had another memorable, defining class: Honors English with Mrs. Danny. This teacher was also unlike any other teacher Madison had ever experienced before but in a better way. Mrs. Danny was one of the first teachers to treat Madison and the other students like real people, like responsible adults. It was refreshing and incredibly trusting of Mrs. Danny. She understood that her sophomore students started to have other obligations, and she tried to accommodate them as much as possible. Mrs. Danny was so kind and genuinely interested in her students' lives. And her class was as fun as she was truly incredible and inspirational. This class really helped Madison blossom into the beautiful flower she would turn out to be. She could express her creativity, meet new people, and have so many great memories. Madison stepped out of her shell and bonded with the people she chose to distance herself from. Mrs. Danny made learning fun!
By the end of second semester of sophomore year, Madison already realized that time in high school was sprinting by like Usain Bolt during a 100 meter dash; and it wasn't slowing down. She quickly entered junior year of high school, finally an upperclassman. An uneventful year academically, it was a time of true bonding with friends and reconnecting with her passion for painting. Madison had good friends in most of her classes and became closer after a few group projects. She started spending more time with these people outside of school and cemented a solid friendship. Still, she remained true to who she was, enjoying time to herself to browse the internet, watch Netflix, or read in bed. Madison still liked to stay home, save the energy of going out and remain on the couch instead. She would sometimes make up excuses to her friends, but she grew to just say that she didn't feel like going out; and they understood.
Madison also enrolled in the intermediate painting class that junior year. She loved to spend the class period finding inspiration, methodically planning the work, sketching the design. After lightly drawing the outline, she would get her plate, brushes, a cup of water, and a paper towel, an entire routine she would continue for every painting. She especially loved water colors and acrylic paint. She could spend ten minutes mixing colors together to find just the right shade of orange-yellow for autumn leaves. Madison would get lost in the paint, the beautiful picture; she would zone out the music and buzz from the conversations around her. She might work until the bell rang if it weren't for the teacher calling time five minutes before class let out so she could clean up. She loved the attention to detail in her art pieces, learned how to paint more freely, depending less on the sketch. Her art teacher, Del Rey, always supported her, complimented her work, and gave great advice. Madison would miss that class.
Before she knew it, summer rolled around. Madison had signed up for a trip to France and Spain that summer of 2014. And fortunately for her, some of her friends were going as well. One of her favorite teachers went as the chaperone, and she knew they would all have a great time together. Their journey to cross the Atlantic was a tumultuous one. Their flight from Florida to Spain somehow got cancelled so instead they flew up to New York City to spend the day there. Having been to New York only once before in sixth grade, Madison thoroughly enjoyed the detour back to the Big Apple even if it meant less time in Spain. She and the group walked around Central Park, Madison Square Garden, and Times Square. It was great to be back.
The day rolled by, and the next morning, she and the rest of the gang were carted off the the airport to finally fly to Barcelona. After a few days of touring, they hopped on a bus to Madrid next. One day in Madrid, the group split up for the afternoon. Madison went to the Parque del Retiro with her friends and teacher. They explored most of the park, sipped on a mojito and had a magical time. Next it was off to Paris, France. Madison remembered running up the steps of the Eiffel Tower on a (false) time crunch. And on the last night, she and the group stayed out late to watch the lights twinkle at the top of the hour. Those precious few minutes were filled with hurried pictures and long sighs of admiration. The whole trip was a truly magnificent experience that awakened Madison's wanderlust.
Senior year quickly commenced as summer came to a close. Madison didn't particularly feel like challenging herself to the fullest extent this year so she took a light course load with easy AP classes. She made sure to still do her best and push through the college application period of the first semester. She focused on her friends, reconnecting with some and losing touch with others, aware of the limited time she had left, relishing each day together. This year was the year Madison fully came out of her shell, realized her true friendships and stepped into her shoes. She had so much fun with the people around her, taking everything in stride, always aware of the few months she had left as a high school student. Sometimes she would look around at her peers and think, "I am actually going to miss you. Well, you not so much. But I'll miss it here." Her last year as a high school student ended as rapidly as it started. Nervousness, excitement, fear, anxiety, giddiness, euphoria, hysteria all melded together insider Madison's brain. She was nervous and excited about the prospect of college, fearful about the real life ahead of her, anxious about what it entailed, giddy and euphoric about starting a new life in a new town to meet new people and make new memories, and just hysteric about all of it. But looking at the people around her, she knew she wasn't alone; and she knew that they would all go on to bigger, better things. Every one of them would positively impact this world in one way or another with their ambitions of becoming a doctor or engineer or physical therapist or nurse, or vet in Madison's case. She was excited to see where they would all end up.
The dynamic character she is, Madison blossomed from the shy freshman to the graduating senior with a head full of unforgettable memories and experiences and people. She changed and grew from the person she was first entering the gates on her first day of high school. She faced and overcame what ever challenges presented themselves, which made her a stronger person. She came, she saw, she conquered. And her hero's journey continues to write itself as she moves forward in all her future endeavors.
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