Linguistics and Foreign Literature
A Proud Moment
The proudest moment of my high school career to this day was the day I was told I received second place at the Valentine Classic meet my junior year because in that moment I knew that my friend, who I had brought into the competition, coached, and studied with, beat me. Nothing I personally achieved ever compared to the pride I felt that day.
Who Knew?
I’m learning how to speak German, Latin, and Greek!
Overcoming Challenge & Lesson Learned
When I was in middle school, I was fully into competitive math and science. It was what I knew. It was what I was good at, and it was what my brother did. When I reached high school, I made a decision. I traded band for theater. I left investigative math to join ready writing and literary criticism. I left everything I was familiar with for the sake of what I loved. You cannot let yourself wallow in your wrong decisions. When you know it is wrong, leave it behind. There is something better waiting for you when that rope falls away. You have to take a little trust fall, but you’ll catch yourself, and you never have to look back.
Advice for Underclassmen
Find the people you belong with. Find the people that make you smile when you glimpse them in the hall, the ones that you know know you better than you know yourself. Find the people you’d go to the ends of the earth for and the ones that have your back in your worse times. It’s so much easier to do right now. Find your people. Remember that a family isn’t always just blood: sometimes it’s the people that you sit with in the morning or at lunch. It’s the ones who wait outside their classrooms for a hug on a rough day. It’s the ones that stay, no matter what you go through. Those will be the people you remember. And take risks. Sign up for the electives you really want and try the extracurriculars you might not like. Go to the competitions and auditions. High school is time to experiment, not to be perfect. You might end up loving one of those whims.
School Activity, Class or Teacher Impact
I would not be able to choose between my time in UIL, A/V, and Theater. They are all integral to who I have become.
Most Cherished High School Memory
It would have to be the nights I spent at my best friend’s house, lying on the grass and looking up at the stars. We were listening to music, under warm streetlights. We were dancing together under the stars, laughing and singing. For those nights I remembered that we were kids, and for those nights nothing mattered more than the smile on her face.
My Inspiration
Whether I need inspiration to get going with my day or inspiration for a challenging poem, my first detour is always to my playlists. The steady beat of music through my headphones never fails me.
Gratitude Check
Mr. Dowell, Ms. Kirby, Ms. Martinez, Mr. Singleton, and Mr. Shoemake, your extracurriculars shaped these last four years, and I would not be anywhere near where I am today without you. Thank you. Thank you to all of my teachers who touched my path, even if I did not formally have your class, and to my family who pushed me to be my best self in the hardest of times. And to Alora. You’ll always be my soul sister. I wouldn’t be here without you.