Sofia Garcia ('23)
During my freshman year, I began to compose a letter to my senior self. Soaring through rose-colored clouds, I wrote about making new friends, my plans to get good grades, and promises to not make mistakes that I’d regret in the future. The next two years have since flown by and my senior year is just on the horizon. Although I can’t say that I’ve followed through with every virtuous aspiration and promise of my younger self, I’ve encountered some unexpected surprises.
Writing a letter to your future self is a common school assignment; I’ve written many throughout my life. But never have I written a response to my younger self that reflects on my successes, shortcomings, and the lessons I’ve learned. And as worthwhile as dreaming is, reflection offers a feeling of accomplishment and gratitude. It’s fun to laugh at the things you thought were important while taking pride in how far you’ve come. So I wondered: if LHS Seniors had the chance to write a letter to their younger selves, what would they say? What are their hopes, the regrets, surprises, and proudest moments of being a senior?
Hopes
“I hoped that I would stay on task being on top of everything but I think that may have been too unrealistic of an expectation. As a freshman I wanted to be a top rank student and try for law but I realized that academics aren’t everything and that having a balance of school work and a social life is good too.”
“I imagined that I would find what I love to do and do that one thing in life. Yet, now sitting here it just makes me wonder that I love so many things it's very hard. I want to help others in many ways I just don't know how.”
“I would have many friends but now I have less than 10 friends”
“Even though I was told my friends would change I expected to be close with the exact same people. My friend group has drastically changed and I’m thankful for the new friends I’ve made and old ones that have stuck by me.”
“I imagined a very chill and relaxing senior year but surprisingly, it felt busier than all of the years combined.”
“I hoped that I would end up at UPenn or another good school but I have since changed my mind.”
Regrets
“I wish I had focused on myself instead of relationships. Whether it be dating or even unhealthy friendships I could have saved myself a lot of time and energy if I just focused on myself.”
“There are so many classes that I wanted to take but ended up not taking. I guess if I planned out my schedule more it would've worked better.”
“I regret some of the decisions i made when i was a freshman/sophomore because it made me not be able to experience high school to the fullest. but you live and learn”
“I regret not joining as many clubs as I wanted or committing to them. I truly regret how I failed some relationships both friendly but also romantically.”
“Not taking my classes seriously especially during my freshman and junior year. Grades are crucial and they say a lot about you student wise”
“I regret worrying about the future so much, not focusing on the present moments I had, and not going to all of the high school activities.”
“A lot (freshman year I wore pink shorts, a grey button up shirt with flamingos, and a Steven universe shirt and thought it was a serve)”
“I regret not being as involved in clubs or sports. I also regret not using the resources teachers offer as much”
“I regret not doing certain things like extracurriculars earlier.”
“Lost time from binging tiktok”
“Letting people use me”
Most Proud Of
“Passing junior year”
“I am so proud of the fact that I’ve grown past the constricting barriers that I had placed for myself. I came into high school thinking that anything I got below an A was an atrocity, and would make me a disappointment to my family. Instead, I learned that there was so much room to grow, that there were people and teachers who were there to help me, and because of this, I expanded my interests to an area I never thought I’d love. I’m grateful for everything high school has given me because of this.”
“My gpa”
“Changing as a person, maturing, and joining theater.”
“I am proud of my growth. Freshman year was really hard for me and I was struggle with a lot of undiagnosed mental health issues. Throughout high school I not only got a diagnosis, but I also found a support system and I slowly discovered how to love myself (which I’m still working on). I’m proud of every morning I got up for school and every day I participated to the best of my ability.”
“I made some good presentations I guess”
“I am proud of wanting to become better as a person and a friend. I learned to be alone at times and see what the world has to offer me. I am proud of being able to balance my life to where I have control of it.”
“I am proud of my overall growth from freshman year to senior year. I definitely found myself a little bit more during these 4 years.”
So, in response to their freshman year letters, these seniors would say:
“Don't get wrapped up in the drama (it won't matter after a few years), choose your friends wisely, take the risk, make connections with your teachers, and don't get in your head over a test grade.”
“Be patient & celebrate the little things. Yes, love your friends and support them, but do the same for yourself. It won’t be easy, but that’s what makes it worth while.”
“Let yourself grow. Not knowing the answer is ok, especially when it comes to grand, life issues.”
“Stop worrying about what others think and say about you. Be yourself. It doesn't hurt the opposite party if you feed into the negativity. It hurts you.”
“Do what makes you happy but also what's going to benefit you in the future. Life consists of choices and knowing the correct one will truly help you.”
“No matter how big the mistake, the most important thing is to learn from it and actively work to improve (not to escape my problems)”
“Enjoy every minute of high school, don’t get caught up in drama, live life to the fullest because everything happens for a reason”
“Don’t do homework last minute and don’t expect things to go exactly as planned because most likely it’s not and that’s ok”
“Chill out- its not that big of deal. do what you love not what you think you have to do”
“Stop saying that you're awkward and you won't be it's like that simple.”
Congrats to the LHS class of 2022!
(P.S. don’t stop dreaming ;)