by Sloane Moriarty
Hey, Pointers. Christmas and the holidays are coming up, and it’s one of the most exciting and looked-forward-to times of the year for everyone. Winter break marks an almost halfway point through the school year, and the anticipation for the New Year is one felt by all students. However, this holiday season especially holds a unique place in seniors' lives, as it’s our last one in high school. This may sound corny now, but boy does it go by fast. I know this is typically something you hear from seniors right before graduation, but I think it’s important to tell you this now so you have time to make the most of the rest of this year.
I’m someone who is extremely antsy and excited by the thought of graduation, and I frequently find myself daydreaming about college and life outside of San Diego. I’m ready for all my hard work to pay off and to finally be accepted into the adult world. However, when I catch myself thinking too intently of the future I’m reminded of the importance of living in the present. I feel as though adolescence has just been a flurry of “When I’s” and “I want,” when it should be a time isolated in “I am.” Let me explain….
Freshman and sophomore years for the class of 2023 were filled with “I want COVID to be over,” “I want to go back to school,” and “When I’m an upperclassman….” Although a natural perspective for such a transitional period of life, these are phrases I advise against using so frequently. Most people reflect back on high school as some of the best years of their life, and its meaning gets lost when one focuses so heavily on the future. If I could tell my freshman self one thing it would be to live in the moment because all of those little moments turn out to be more important than the big things.
So, as much as this may sound like your typical motivational speech, it’s just a nostalgic senior wishing that she spent more time enjoying the things that make high school so special. Participate in as many things as you can. Meet new people. Branch out. Don’t do things like try and convince yourself and your peers that you’re too cool to go to dances and football games, because one, you’re not, and two, they’re actually pretty cool themselves. Create bonds with your teachers, appreciate the effort they put into your education, and you may just end up finding yourself looking forward to being in their class. Take advantage of the unique things Point Loma has to offer its students like unique clubs, a crazy spread of sports, and a pretty fine free lunch program. Enjoy your day-to-day experiences and stop worrying so much about what’s to come because the future is inevitable, and the only thing you can alter is what you’re doing right now, in this present moment.
All in all, my advice to you is to take each day for what it is, because as soon as you know it, you’re going to be in my shoes, fretting over your last winter break as a high schooler, wishing you would’ve spent more time focusing on the now rather than on a looming graduation that’s three years away. As one of my favorite ladies from history, Eleanor Roosevelt, once said, “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift, that is why we call it the present.”