By Christina Burke
Managing Editor

As I reflect upon my high school experience, I realize that I have learned a lot of things in my four years at Coppell High School – not just the names of all the United States Presidents in order to the tune of Yankee Doodle, (special thanks to Mrs. Furnish), but I have also learned many things about the person I am and the person I want to be when I migrate out of the Coppell bubble.

First of all, I have learned a lot about friendship. People always say that you meet your lifelong best friends in college, and in response to that all I can say is I hope that this is not entirely true. Though my very best friends and I will be at different schools next year, I will never forget the late night giggles and crazy adventures we have shared in our years together.

As for other bonds I have made, I realize sadly that I will have to live and let go, and that is a hard lesson to learn, but I figured it out this year. You just have to think of it like this: the people who are removed from your life have already made their impact on you, and it is time for both of you to move on.

The most important thing I have taken out of the friendships I have developed in Coppell is that great friends make each other better people. I can say confidently that my best friends have had such a positive impact on my life and they played such a big role in making me the person I turned out to be, and for that I thank them.

The next thing I took out of high school was never to give up on my dreams. I know that sounds completely cliche, but the thing you will find as you continue through life is that you can actually accomplish pretty much anything you set your mind to.

It has been a long, frankly never-ending, four years at CHS, and I have worked long and hard in school for the last 12 years for the purpose of attaining one goal: college. It has not always been easy and I frequently fell short of my short-term goals, but when I got my acceptance letter to the University of Texas at Austin this year, everything I had ever done had seemed so worth it, and anyone who ever told me I could not do it had proved themselves wrong.

In addition on the topic of dreams, I would like my fellow graduates to remember when it comes to future careers you should do what makes you happy. At Austin Elementary’s fifth grade career day, I declared to the whole student body that I wanted to be an author because writing was my passion, and through the amazing journalism and creative writing programs at CHS, I have been able to bring that dream to life in a way that would make my 11-year-old self beam with pride. You can tell me all you want that journalists and authors do not make a lot of money, but I will tell you that no amount of money is worth the miserable feeling of lacking fulfilment in a passion.

Another lesson I learned from getting older and being able to make my own decisions was not let anybody tell you what to do or who to be. Be the ruler of your own life. Listen to obscure music. Make a new fashion statement. Be yourself.

I am quite a unique person, and I take pride in that because I know I am different than most people, and that is totally OK. I love the person I turned out to be. Honestly, the best quality that a person can have is a great personality, and if you have that, I would say you are doing life pretty good.

I am forever thankful for the 18 wonderful years I was given in Coppell and the four I spent at CHS. I am thankful for the opportunity to have written for The Sidekick all these years and the experiences I have gotten along the way. Thank you for reading my personal thoughts, and I hope I made an impact on you.