How many times have you looked at a high school student and shook your head? It is hard to remember, even as a first-year, that you were once like that. Walking around the crowded halls, ID card around your neck, trying to survive the day-to-day struggle of teenage angst.
We have all been there. It is practically a prerequisite for the stress-filled wonderland that is college. Though the transition between high school and college is a metamorphosis that we all go through, to most, the change is unnoticeable until nostalgia hits.
“I am pretty much the same since high school,” said senior James Rinearson. “(I am) sociable, reaching but always struggling with academics. The biggest difference is that I can drink legally now.”
I, personally, was a clown with little-to-no-filter on how I treated people. I was labeled as crazy, and I ran with it. I was a big guy with anger issues and mental health problems who sought solace through acting like a fool in school.
But after four years of college, I am proud to say I am not that guy now. I have grown up a lot since then. I have accumulated a “grown up” debt, written “grown up” papers, had “grown up” conversations and even had “grown up” drinks.
Growing up from high school to college, you see a lot, especially when it comes to understanding the world.
“In high school, I was far less aware than I am now” said sophomore Virginia Stanton. “I’ve opened my eyes to a lot of the systems, illusions and ideas that needed to be shattered.”
The insecurities and anxieties of the past also come to light when we reflect on high school.
“In high school, I was much sadder, much less social and dependent on stuff I shouldn’t have depended on,” said sophomore James O’Bryant. “I was also much more aggressive and violent.”
Despite who they were in high school, many students believe they have changed and evolved as person through the independence that comes with college.
“In high school, I thought I knew who I was,” said senior Alexandra Baddley. “But it wasn’t until college that I really got to behave and think for myself and only myself.”
Despite its being a four-year horror house of anxiety and raging hormones, there are some things we miss about high school.
“I miss my orchestra class and the campus of my high school,” said junior Charles New.
I personally miss the high jinks of high school. I remember senior year, pretending to see a ghost in the middle of class just so I would have an excuse to run out of class and skip.
I am not the only one to remember the shenanigans.
“I went to military school and had to stay in a dorm in high school,” said senior Daniel Finn. “My roommate was drinking beer in our room, and he got his finger stuck in one of the bottles. So we decided to break the bottleneck, but it didn’t break right, so he had a beer bottle ring for like a week.”
Others remember the mistakes that came with peer pressure.
“One time, after a lacrosse game, my buddy gave me this fruity-flavored dip,” said junior Austin Huddle. “When I was driving home after the game, I started throwing up all over the inside of my truck. I haven’t dipped since.”
High school is a critical part in our lives. It marks us as who we were and foreshadows who we will or want to be. Our metamorphosis as people between high school and college maybe be a subtle but powerful change that many are thankful and appreciative to have.
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