Senioritis hit me hard three weeks ago.
I began to care less and less about getting assignments done and procrastinating more than ever. With less than a week left, I have only a few days left to get everything that I have put off done.
Other than the current stress of completing my assignments and the anticipation of being done with high school in a few days, senior year has been incredible.
August – Coming into senior year, I didn’t expect it to be much different from junior year. I knew my schedule was going to be extremely simple, filled with easy classes with people that I was friends with, so I had no worries. Little did I know, I was about to start looking into filling out college applications, which was a lot more stressful than I thought it was going to be.
September – Football games, Chicago, college applications, and the senior retreat, September had its highlights. Being in the front rows of the FHC student section and getting to watch football games with my friends created unforgettable nights. I took a trip to Chicago for Labor Day and saw the Tigers demolish the White Sox. I hadn’t taken many trips in 2023, so taking an extended weekend to go to Chicago was so much fun; it was a break from reality and a short pause on working on my college applications. I began researching and locking in on looking at colleges, but more importantly, I started tackling one of the most important essays of my life, my college application essay. The senior retreat was an okay day with my classmates. Not being able to choose to be with my friends to complete the activities made it a lot less enjoyable, but most of the day was pretty fun. I wish that I could go back and tell myself to enjoy it more than I did at the time.
October – College admissions took over my life. Every moment not spent at school or doing homework was spent on college applications, especially the essay. I spent an insane amount of time on my essay, more than any other essay I’ve ever written. I knew the classes that I had taken throughout high school weren’t the most impressive and neither were my SAT scores, so I knew my essay had to be outstanding to make up for the classes and test scores. I wrote an essay on a challenge that I overcame that was unique to me that very few other people have to endure, and Mr. George helped me with my fine-tuning and making sure it was ready to submit to all of the colleges that I applied to. At the end of October was Halloween. I went as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with my best friend, continuing the tradition of her coming over and us going trick-or-treating, this time though was for the last time.
November and December – These months were kind of a blur. Not a whole lot happened in these months. My horse was given a minimum of six months of stall rest and a minimum of a year and a half of recovery due to a severely damaged tendon. I went from riding and working with him 5 days a week to no riding at all. I went on a beautiful Caribbean cruise for winter break. I unknowingly met Nikola Jokić on a plane, I had no idea who he was until someone explained who he was to me. I received my acceptance letter to Michigan State University on December 9. So yeah, a bunch of little big things happened.
January and February – January marked the beginning of the final semester of high school. The first semester flew by so fast, and it was difficult to believe that I was so close to being done with grade school. I finally chose and committed to Michigan State after receiving my acceptance from multiple other universities. I had a cake-making contest with a handful of my friends, Nora and I were partners. The other team sabotaged us by putting hot sauce on our cake while we walked away for a minute. My friends and I had a Galentine’s Day party which was so much fun. I attended Winterfest for the first time. Although pictures were a bit of a struggle, the rest of the night was one of the most fun nights of my life. Spending time with my friends and feeling pretty made for such a wonderful night.
March – I turned 18. It felt no different than being 17. A few things with my parents changed, but it wasn’t as dramatic of a change compared to what I thought it would be like. My mom and Ava Ackerman surprised me with sushi lunch in Mr. Fisher’s room on my birthday. It was an incredible and heartwarming surprise. I hadn’t planned on doing anything with my friends for my birthday due to it being right before spring break, but this surprise made turning 18 something special.
April – It’s almost over and has been one of the best months of my senior year, besides being extremely behind with schoolwork. One of the highlights was being reached out to by someone I never thought I would see or hear from ever again. I’m so glad I put the R.E.M. song “The End of the World (As We Know It)” on my Instagram note, he reached out saying that he loves R.E.M., everything from there has been absolutely amazing and I’ve never been happier. I attended my first Prom, I was grounded last year so I didn’t get to go. Going dress shopping was honestly a very annoying process, but was worth it when I found the perfect dress. Prom night was one of the best nights ever. Going around location to location and taking pictures with my friends and creating so many beautiful memories that will never be forgotten. The dance itself could have been decorated better, but overall the dance was enjoyable. My senior prom went as well as I imagined it going. Afterwards when we went to my friend’s house, I fell asleep so fast. I also got Covid for the first time which was pretty miserable.
May – May is tomorrow. My last day of highschool is in six days. I graduate in 13 days.
My senior year has flown by so fast that I didn’t even have time to appreciate how amazing and special this year has been. Thank you to everyone who made it the best year that it could have been.
Cya, FHC.
– Olivia Rainey
