The school year of 2009-10 is nearing its end. As it does, more than 170 students prepare themselves mentally and emotionally for the end of what many of them consider to be the first chapter of their life. With the uncertainty of the future looming, one could find comfort and solace looking at the past and feeling the same uncertainty only four years ago.

   In many cases, a senior may look back at the person he or she was their freshman year and would barely recognize him or herself. Your average freshman comes into high school as a shy, self-conscious, and relatively hairless entity with horrible assumptions of high school brought upon by overly exaggerative teen movies. It may take longer than freshman year, but eventually freshmen get comfortable and find their own rhythm, which is the key to surviving high school. Senior Lauren Lyssy said, “I was scared at first, but once I got acquainted and used to this school, things started flowing,”

   The space between freshman and senior year is a time of great change in friendship, goals, interests, and even one’s personality as a whole.

    Middle school is the time when students usually lose the most friends, but it’s in high school where you find who your friends really are by their actions. If you’re lucky, your circle of friends will not change too dramatically, but that is less than common. “Some of my friends used to be a little stupid, but now I think I have closer friends,” senior Mark Savage said.

      In high school, what you are going to do when you grow up becomes much more real of a question. With maturity comes a better understanding of the reality of work and future career goals. “I still have the same goal, but my means of achieving it has changed,” senior Jason Love said.

      The main thing that changes the mindset from a freshman to a senior is the reality of graduation. As a freshman, graduating still seems like a lifetime away, but as a senior, leaving high school in constantly on the mind. That balloon looming over ones head allows seniors to forsake miniscule matters such as cliques and popularity and finally learn to be comfortable with themselves. ”By sophomore year, it was still a little apparent, but now you see kids just being themselves… I think it’s a real eye opener to see how many people have changed from our freshman year to now,” senior Danny Mills said.

      In a few years, the graduating class of 2010 will not even remember the fear of leaving school and entering real life, just as it has with the fear of the first year of high school. In the end, change is always scary, but, in many cases, it ultimately brings growth and a better understanding of yourself and the world around you.  And all we can do is keep that in mind as more changes in life come about.