In a little less than three months from now, I will be graduating from Paint Branch High School. With this graduation comes the next step in my life; I will finally (for the most part) be on my own, left to my own devices. While this freedom has seemed so tantalizingly out of reach throughout my high school years, now that it is just over the horizon, I must admit that it scares the living daylights out of me.

Let me get something out of the way: People are not lying when they tell you that your senior year schedule will most likely be the most relaxed of your high-school career. However, now that I’m almost done, I have to wonder if that is always a good thing. This far into senior year, I am kind of divided on the issue. On one hand, I have had plenty of time to relax and have time to do as I please. I have even had time to read a couple of books recreationally, something that I either wasn’t interested in (looking at you, freshman & sophomore me), or something that I simply did not have the time to do. On the other hand, I have often found myself getting tired of the painstaking monotony of this year’s schedule, even though my AP classes this year have been some of the most interesting and thought-provoking classes I have taken. Those APs make up less than half of my schedule this year, and I shudder at even the thought of saying this, but I find myself missing junior year. Trust me, that is a statement I thought I’d never make but, looking back, I miss the challenge it brought and the fact that I simply didn’t have time to be bored because of that challenge.

The main knock on senior year is the fact that it is all going to be over soon. Depending on your outlook, that could also be its biggest plus, of course. I do find myself flip-flopping between the two outlooks in this regard but either way, I know I will miss Paint Branch. I will miss the outstanding teachers who have taught me these four years. They have not only been great at teaching their courses, but have also been fantastic mentors, who have often gone above and beyond their job description. I will also – maybe more importantly (sorry, staff!) – greatly miss the friends I have made. I will miss the football games. I will miss the basketball games. I will miss the late-night runs to Chick-fil-a. I will miss working at AMC with my co-workers from Paint Branch. Heck, I’ll even miss having lunch at the benches day in and day out. Yes, it is going to be great to leave and begin a new chapter of my life but, at the same time I’m going to be leaving, so will a majority of my friends. Gone will be the days where I could, on a whim, meet my friends for ice cream, as we head in different directions next year.

That’s why I am hoping for these final days to slow down, maybe even to a crawl, so I can soak it all up one last time.