While an empty swimming pool or dimly lit hallway can trigger feelings of discontent, adolescence is the most unsettling state for some. The ages 13-19 can be a tightrope walk as teenagers juggle feeling tethered to the past, making the most of the present, and looking toward what’s next.
Constant preparation, academic and otherwise, for the future is coupled with nostalgia for what has been. Selfishness is somewhat an expectation, but so is a newfound self-awareness. The milestones that always may have once sounded far away become a reality.
Once upon a time, older students were an intimidating presence to junior Sophie Donahue. “I feel like when I was a freshman, I thought that the juniors were so old … but I don’t feel the way I thought that the juniors were. I don’t feel that old. I thought they were full-grown adults, and I still feel like I’m a kid,” Donahue said.
For junior Helen Frost, moving into the increased responsibility of an 11th grader has resulted in some diminished enthusiasm for the joys of high school.
“I feel like I’m less excited about things,” Frost said. “In freshman year … going to a dance or hanging out with people, every class felt super exciting.”
With the finish line of graduation approaching in just over a year, Frost is looking forward to senior traditions such as homecoming, overalls, and senior sunrise. However, although Frost’s departure is still months away, the demands of junior year require her to think about the future constantly.
“[Junior year] is definitely a lot more things about college, a lot more thinking about SAT, ACT, meeting with your college counselors. I feel like I’m taking a lot more classes that I would want to be on my transcript,” she said.
However, with the intensity of the school year wrapping up for senior Cassandra Overholt, she finds herself shifting her focus away from the demands of her academic life. While she’s always enjoyed a sense of independence, Overholt is embracing this trait in a way as an adult.
“I can go places that I want to go. I can do what I want to do…sign out when I want to leave,” she said. “There’s less of an adult influence on my decisions.”
In addition, while moving into the unknown of her future, Overholt has begun to sort out what to leave behind.
She credits her English class with prompting “a lot of looking back on the past” as she moves through different chapters of her life.
“I think it’s important to let go of a lot of who you were as a child … pick up the independence and let go of the dependence,” she said.
Time can move fast and slow at the same time. Many students have found that it is important to remain present and hold on to what makes life meaningful.
