As the school year is coming to an end, Seniors are beginning to reflect on their high school experience: what they are proud of, what they would do differently, and what advice they would share with those who are younger than them. This is a space where these seniors can share these thoughts, and the younger students can view it and apply it to their academic career.

There were three major topics that kept getting brought up in some way with almost every person I asked. These three were getting involved, making friends, and being present.

One of the main themes I saw when asking seniors what advice they had was to get involved in everything you want to. Whether that is sports, theatre, NHS, or anything else, you should be connected. They said the best memories from high school come from these moments.

Another main theme was friend groups. Surrounding yourself with the right friends is extremely important to how your years in high school will play out. It was encouraged to focus on genuine friendships instead of trying to impress every single person.

The last thing was being present. This may sound cliche or like it doesn’t matter, but high school goes by so fast. Be present in every moment, even when it’s boring, instead of just wishing away your high school years. Most people spend their years in high school saying “I can’t wait to be a senior” or “I want to graduate already”, but once it gets to that moment, you might wish you spent a little more time taking it all in.

High school isn’t perfect and probably won’t ever be perfect for anyone, but according to these Seniors, it’s what you make of it, so take this advice.