Monday, Aug. 24 was a hard day for my mother. She drove her only son to his first before- school football practice, dropped off her youngest daughter at the doors of CMS East for her first day of middle school and watched her oldest daughter drive to her last first day of high school.
It was, needless to say, a tear-jerker.
As for myself, the knowledge that I was walking down the main corridor and climbing the stairs to my locker for the last first time was mildly exhilarating – until I was unexpectedly hit with the fact that in a year, I would not be here.
I would not wake up at 7 a.m. to get ready for another day at Coppell High School; I would not enter into my first day of a high school class at 8:20 a.m., nor would I hear the bell ring 52 minutes afterward to signify its end. I would be starting new somewhere else.
And with this realization came a new perspective – this year will be my last “first time”.
It is strange how sometimes the simplest concepts change the way you look at things. Now, I’m not saying that I’m seeing CHS through rose-colored glasses, but things do certainly look less bleak when you realize how close you are to moving on.
All this is not to say that the concept of going somewhere else, meeting new people and experiencing new things is an incredibly appealing one. It just has a feeling of sadness attached to it. There is comfort in our everyday regime and having to start anew is never easy.
But on the other hand, there is enjoyment to be found in meeting a new set of teachers for the first time. Although we have been taught all our lives to never judge by a book by its cover, it’s always fun to compare impressions of teachers with friends over lunch and discuss what our expectations of our new courses are.
And while I’ve been at this high school for four years, this year I get to experience a variety of last first time privileges which come with the honor of being a senior. For example, in the last few minutes before class started on the first day of school I was able to gaze down upon the passing crowds from the choice location of the senior bridge. On Friday of the first week of school, I was able to show off hours of hard work and creativity in my senior overalls. And on Sept. 25, I’ll finally be able to wear a white mum as opposed to red and black.
All in all, senior year has the potential to be the best year of anyone’s high school career, but with its exciting “extra features” also comes the knowledge of serious change – a bittersweet ending to a fruitful four years.
