After 4 incredible years, this is the final piece I will ever have the honor of writing for the Hoofprint. Although “lasts” have been plentiful this year, this is one of the harder ones to come to terms with. Writing has been my life through out high school, and now I can’t help but wonder if I have what it takes to make it in the real world.
When people ask why I’m not more excited for college, my only response is “Because I’m good at high school.” Breaking out of a comfort zone is never easy; for myself, it is especially difficult because I rely on consistency and preparation. As I look back at these 4 years, there is a writing-related instance from each in which I learned something valuable that didn’t necessarily pertain to writing itself.
Lesson number one: First experiences tend to shape attitudes. If something doesn’t go well the first time it is attempted, people tend to lose their confidence and desire to succeed. Third quarter of freshman year I found myself in Kelly Barrick’s Journalism 1 class. Little did I know that this would be the class that shaped the rest of my high school years. As we began our first paper, Mrs. Barrick outlined how a journalistic piece should be assembled. When she began discussing the interview procedure, my heart sunk. I was shy; talking to strangers in order to write a paper was not my idea of inviting. Her order to “suck it up” pushed me into my first ever interview. To this day I don’t remember the topic; what matters is the fact that I completed it. Talking to a stranger wasn’t as terrible as I had imagined. They didn’t yell at me or laugh at my inexperience. Instead, they were eager to discuss and explain, which made all the difference in the end.
Lesson number two: Make things happen. No one is going to hold your hand through these years. Sophomore year I officially joined the Hoofprint as a photographer. Oblivious to the way McCallum’s room operated, I assumed someone would train me in seeing as I had no prior experience. As I entered his room on the first worknight, I was greeted by the overwhelming smell of Buck’s pizza, crazy pencil snapping, and 20 unfamiliar faces. I was immediately intimidated and felt left out; no one even took notice that I was there. I spent that night researching Adobe Photoshop and teaching myself how to use it. Looking back now, I treat new members the same way. I’ve realized that it’s not that the staff didn’t welcome me; it was just that they had a lot to focus on and if I wanted to be a part of that, I would have to wiggle myself into their tight-knit group. Pushing myself in turned out to be the right choice because I gained confidence and knowledge for the coming year as an editor, as well as realized that upperclassmen were not evil.
Lesson number three: Don’t be overconfident. There is always more to learn and gain. By junior year I assumed I had learned all the ropes and had established a writing and editing rhythm. I was still a part of the Hoofprint, in addition to the Tatanka yearbook and McCallum’s Journalism 2 class. I had agreed to write a story about a Holocaust survivor, figuring it would be somewhat dull like numerous other stories I had written lately. When I returned from the presentation and sat down to compile all my information, I was lost. There was nowhere clear to begin with such an emotional and lengthy story. This irritated me to no end because I had come to rely on writing coming easily. After slapping words on a page, I sat down with McCallum and we went through it for over an hour. I came to realize something was different about this story: I had to work at it, which was exciting. I had lost my love of writing through repetitive, simple stories. All it took to restore that love was an emotional story that I was invested in. If McCallum hadn’t taken the time to convince me I could do better, I would have become more arrogant and lost out on a learning opportunity.
Lesson number four: Be who you are and say what you believe. Peoples’ opinions of you won’t matter in the long run. Senior year I began writing opinion pieces for the paper. The second one I wrote dealt with a controversial topic: Homosexuality from a Christian viewpoint. I had volunteered to write it because of a personal interaction that had upset me and I wanted to hit a broad audience with my response. I was extremely fired up when I wrote it, but as I went over it on worknight I wasn’t so sure I wanted to publish it anymore. I avoid conflict at all costs, and this column was inviting it. As McCallum and I weighed the pros and cons, I realized that sooner or later I would have to stand up for my beliefs and face the consequences. I gained confidence in myself through publishing it, but more importantly I also gained confidence in this school because it went over much better than I had anticipated.
There are now less than ten days left of high school. I know that nothing I write can effectively sum up the experiences that have shaped my classmates and I these past 4 years because they go much deeper than mere words. As cliche as it may sound, I want younger students to take advantage of the opportunities they are offered here. In retrospect, they pay off much more than I originally thought. I don’t regret any chances I took in this school because they shaped the person I am; therefore, I would encourage underclassmen to push their limits daily.
