Yes, it happens every year, and yes it has happened to millions of people, but as a junior in high school, finally becoming a senior and even beyond that, moving onto college and adult life is a shocking idea that many people, myself included, have mixed emotions about. Junior year is so frantic and stress-filled that at the end of the year, the proposition of becoming a senior springs up on most people like a surprise party you aren’t sure if you actually want. The idea attacked me the first day the junior class sat in the senior section at morning meeting since the actual seniors were gone for community service. Sitting in those seats, though seemingly insignificant, was bizarre for me, as well as many of my peers. It seemed to create a sense of nostalgia and ambivalence among us as we looked all the way over to the freshman section of seats, remembering when we were the little new kids of the school. The last three years have been an enormous journey, and the next year will be no different. Maybe our grades matter more now than they did three years ago in determining the success of our futures, or maybe not. The more important thing now, however, is that the junior class is accepting the fact that we will soon be the elder statesmen and women of the school, despite the fact that it will likely take most of us some adapting.
Currently the seniors are finishing their community service, and, with that, their high school careers. The younger students and juniors like myself have already felt their absence: sadly, if you have friends who are seniors, though more happily if you are a juniors who can now park in the senior lot for a brief period. More than that, however, the class of 2016 has big shoes to fill, not just for the class of 2015, but also for seniors in general. It is now our responsibility to be the role models and leaders of the school, from sports to academics, as well as spirit. We are expected to win all the class cup events, the homecoming tent, but also to be respectful, if by some odd chance we are to lose something. Looking forward to senior year, there will be a lot of other responsibilities like the plethora of jobs connected to the college application process, as well as keeping up with classes during the year, AP exams at the end of the year, and probably the most difficult of all the tasks, fighting off the disease known as senioritis, which will likely strike the entire class of 2016 at one point of another.
In just several months’ time, the class of 2016 will take over as the seniors of the school. We will, like all previous senior classes, be required to answer to the school and the administration more than in previous years. Despite the immense stress of junior year, the year seemed to fly by, with orientation seeming like just last week, and the joy and pride of finishing the Oral History Project seeming like it was just yesterday. These are the things that we will reflect on in the future with pride, despite the enormous amount of complaining we did this year, the countless cries of, “wow, I got no sleep last night,” and the, “whoops, I’m never making it through this year, let alone getting into college.” The junior class accomplished a lot this year, and like all the other grades as well, we will be expected to accomplish even more next year, and regardless of our cynical thoughts, we will succeed ultimately, and we will make St Andrews proud to have us as the senior class, and as the class of 2016.