As a junior, I have been reflecting on freshman and sophomore years, focusing on what I want my upperclassmen years to be like. My high school experience has been great thus far. I try to make it to all the games, I audition for the theater department, I ran for student council, and I write for the paper. While I am fairly involved in the school, my underclassmen years have lacked school spirit.

There have been many reasons why I did not participate on spirit days as an underclassmen. As a freshmen, most of my refusal to participate was the unknown: What if I get the days wrong and I’m the only one to show up in pajamas? What if I go to far out and embarrass myself in head to toe neon when everyone else only applies the neon to their shirt? As a sophomore, I thought it didn’t matter if I participated or not. What would it matter if I show up in a superhero outfit or not?

Today, I would tell my freshman self that it does not matter what people think, especially on spirit days. To my sophomore self, I would say that while your direct participation seems like it doesn’t matter, because it most certainly does. Spirit days are not to be taken selfishly. It is not about how you dress up by yourself or who can out do each other. It is bigger than you. It is about being apart of something bigger. It’s coming together as a class and as a school. Spirit days bring a sense of unity to our school, and that’s something that we all need.

Pride in our school is not based solely on how many sports you play or how many clubs you participate in. It is how you come together. This year I have been apart of all the spirit weeks, big games, and all the traditions that follow. I feel as though I have connected more to my peers, made more memories, and I feel like I am apart of something. This year has been the best yet. It is what you make it.