![The cross country team poses for the camera after finishing the district meet. The varsity boys, JV boys and JV girls all placed third and the varsity girls placed fourth. “Coach put in the right training for us for this season, so I think we will be peaking this week and the next couple of weeks,” varsity runner and junior Nathan Kukla said. “The chances of making it to state are very high, but we don’t settle for the lowest and there is always going to be that chance, so [we] race for the best.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Heidi-831-1200x900.jpg)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Standing proud, varsity senior athletes Rafael Escobar, Griffin Jacobs, Jakob Martin, and juniors Jackson Springer and Jack Morris pose with their newly earned medals. The varsity team finished third out of 14 teams on Sept. 25. “The team's primary goal is to win the district championship,” head coach Cody Price said. "We're confident that with our action plan in place, we can accomplish this mission. [For the next tournament], our preparation involves assessing our strengths and weaknesses, celebrating milestones and creating individual development plans." Photo courtesy of Cody Price](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/golf.jpg)
High school is defined in the dictionary as a school attended after elementary school or junior high school and usually consisting of grades 9 or 10 through 12, that’s a pretty simple definition if you ask me. Of course, everyone has their own opinion of how they would define these four years. Some might say they were awesome or exciting, others might say dramatic and heart breaking and then there are those who would describe them as horrifying and bleak. Then there was me, and I was indifferent about the whole experience.
Since second semester hit this year, the reality of graduation has hit me at random times, forcing me to look back and reflect on the past four years. I’ve had about eight different best friends, most of them who I don’t speak to anymore. I’ve been on the soccer team for four years, and am the only member who stuck it out. I’ve been in 12 different clubs and organizations, most of which I joined only to improve the appeal of my college application. But really, I don’t have huge regrets about my high school experience. Yes there are a few moments I wish I could erase, but I really believe everything happens for a reason. The mistakes I made in the past have only helped me be the person I am today. Yes that sounds completely cliche but it’s the truth.
My first word of advice, don’t take high school too seriously. Nothing that happens now is earth shattering or will matter in the next 5 years. That backstabbing best friend will ultimately get what’s coming to her. That dumb boy who broke your heart will probably end up doing nothing with his life. Karmas a witch and what goes around comes around, these sayings are true, so watch how you treat people.
My second word of advice, don’t have expectations. If you think high school should be wonderful, it will fall flat every time. It’s not a musical, there’s no Zac Efron as leading man, star of the basketball team and the best singer in school. There’s no fairy tale relationship that is without flaws, there is no perfect high school. There is no perfect anything actually; I found that when I just sat back I had the most fun.
It really doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. If you want to wear t-shirts and sweats every day, go for it. Actually I encourage it. Comfort really is the way to go. High school just doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Thanks to Hollywood, people think it’s supposed to be this grand experience, when in reality, it’s just another four years out of your life that really isn’t that significant.
Don’t get me wrong, I did have fun in high school. I have some great memories to take with me in life and have made friends that I will never forget. Just remember, it’s just high school. Have fun while you can and don’t take anything too seriously. Try and work hard so you’ll be better prepared for the future but don’t stress out, and whatever you do, learn to jump a fence.
