I am almost certain that what everyone says is true: freshman year really flies by. After all, the first three days felt like nothing at all; ironically, the first month is already over. I felt that I should record my experiences for people to relate to, for people in the coming years entering high school, and to keep a journal for myself to always look back on.

Let’s start a little before August. At that time, I wanted to just check when school would start; what I saw shocked me. August 27, 2025. Usually for me, school always starts after Labor Day. I always thought that August would be an amazing summer month with little to no studying except for summer homework. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong. I went back-to-school shopping a week before I usually do and I felt as if a chunk of my summer was just gone. Nonetheless, I kept my head up high and looked towards school starting early as a benefit. It makes integrating into the school’s sports and student life easier.

Then came the big day: the first day of high school. It turned out to be a mixed bag of emotions. I’m sure every student was a little bit nervous and excited, but everyone played it off. Come on, admit it. High school is a completely different environment and experience compared to middle school. There are new teachers, friends, difficult courses, and a challenging school to get used to. The best part of the first day, in my opinion, was the opportunity to wear your best clothes. I am sure that everyone, on their first day, had laid out what clothes they were going to wear the night before.

Soon, the time struck 12 p.m. and it was time to head out and enter high school for the first time as a student. My parents dropped me off and I came into the building with a large group of my friends. I sat in the auditorium eagerly waiting for announcements while seeing some of my friends who I had missed over the summer. I then got directed to my homeroom with the help of peer leaders. It was tough navigating the school, but with the help of the seniors stationed around the school, going from one place to the other didn’t prove to be extremely difficult. Yes, I did get lost a couple of times, but I reached my destination at the end of the day. All my classes were amazing; they were full of amazing teachers and friends. Almost as soon as the day began, the final bell rang and the first day of school came to an end. It was a wild day and it ended perfectly.

In the following two days, I was bombarded with class syllabi, instructions, and procedures. I had to hand in my summer homework and almost immediately I was facing test and essay dates left and right. The most surprising thing that happened was during lunch. In middle school, no one ever bought food from Doordash, Uber eats, or Grubhub to be delivered to school, but apparently in high school, things are different. I saw many classmates, upperclassmen, and friends ordering and receiving food from these apps, while others headed to Washington Street to get lunch. Another surprising fact is the sheer freedom that students in high school have. I feel that IDTs are the best thing introduced in the world! I also love that I don’t even need to have the same class every day since the schedule is always rotating. 

Despite all the difficulties, I believe that high school will be one of the best four-year stretches of my life.