WORDS FROM THE CLASS OF 2020

Before the end of the school year, a number of Sycamore 8th graders put

their thoughts into words and reflected on their time at Sycamore School.

Here are excerpts from some of this year’s graduates.

HANNA WARREN

Why does Sycamore feel so special? It isn’t because the actual

building is magical. The thing that makes this place feel like it

does is the people. I only had the luck to be here two years, and

from an outsider’s point of view, let me just say this: the class

of 2020 and the amazing staff aren’t the typical middle school

students or teachers. Everyone has a little extra kindness, a little

extra perseverance, a little extra something. When I arrived

here in seventh grade, I was immediately surrounded by people

who wanted to learn, who wanted to grow into better people,

and ultimately, people who just wanted to be friends. I didn’t

have to seek out new people to hang out with; they sought me

out. Sycamore is like a family, which is what makes separating

our class so much harder. There is very little I would change

about my experiences here. Everything seems so finalized, but

we certainly still have a long way to go. As Winston Churchill

so wisely said, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the

courage to continue that counts.”

EMALINE MORSE

We have been dealing with change and a multitude have

happened in just these past three months. We have been strong.

We have adapted to the online school. For me, online school

was challenging because I wanted to spend our last Sycamore

months with friends, sitting around the lunch table, going to

clubs, science or history competitions, asking teachers questions

in person, having a typical school day routine. What I learned

through the last two years is that challenges help us grow and

our close-knit community helps us listen, give advice, and

Hanna Warren

then become more adjusted to these challenges. Change is

necessary. As you get older you must change, you must grow as a

person. When something important in your life changes, you’re

vulnerable and you see yourself as weak because you haven’t

experienced something and it worries you. I am not ready for

the change to high school, but I wasn’t ready for my change

to Sycamore. Now, I look back at how I was feeling and can’t

imagine a world where I didn’t love Sycamore.

ALEX LU

After three years of roaming its halls, Sycamore truly became a

part of me. From the moment I stepped into the hallway, I felt

a kind of warmth and friendship emanating from everyone I

met. Everybody spoke to one another like they were best friends.

Everyone said hi. I hadn’t experienced this before. Instead of

impassive stares and stony faces, everyone seemed happy and

excited to be here. Finally, everyone seemed to know so much.

The record board in the math room stretched for miles down.

I didn’t know the names, or the contests, but it certainly looked

impressive. Nobody stared blankly into space. Everyone was

engaged and active. Waking up every morning and seeing my

comrades in arms laughing and greeting me became a daily

routine. And all too soon the coronavirus cut our last few

months together short. The emptiness I hear every morning

and the unfamiliar sunlight I see at my window instead of pitch

black reveals how much I need my friends and community here

at Sycamore.

ROHAN SHAH

We will never forget the connections we have made since we

first walked through the doors of Sycamore School. I’ve grown

so much not only as a student at my time at Sycamore, but as a

person. I’ve learned to grow from my mistakes. I feel our class

has learned to support each other more. We’ve become more

independent each year and figured out that Sycamore is a place

where we can all learn to trust each other. Now, you can see how

much we’ve matured over the years. Sycamore has given me new

opportunities and pushed me to become a better person.

SARA FULK

Sycamore has taught me so many amazing things. It’s taught me

that Oxford commas are the most important kind of comma.

It’s taught me that you should always adapt your thinking to the

needs of the day. I think the most important thing that I have

learned is how to fail - an important skill to have. I remember

coming home with a minus on a paper in first grade and I was so

upset. I thought I failed at being smart.

Comparison is the death of happiness. I truly believe that. There

are always going to be kids that do better than me. Not just in

school, but in life. When I get a good grade on something, I al

ways try to think about how well I did and not how someone else

did. I also try to keep my celebrations to a minimum because I

know what it feels like to be the kid that did not do well.

T.J. Cole

T.J. COLE

I have a poem in my room. It sits against my bathroom mirror,

and every morning, when I get up, I look at it. There is one quote

that really sticks with me. “Know, though, that things worth

doing seldom come easy. There will be good days and there will

be bad days. There will be times when you want to turn around,

pack it up and call it quits. Those times tell you… that you are

not afraid to learn by trying.” We remember the characters of

epic stories, not because of how many lives they changed, but

because, like the poem said, they had many chances to turn

around. To give up. To forget that whatever evil they were fight

ing even existed. To go back home like nothing ever happened.

We remember these characters because they had every chance

to go back, but they didn’t. None of you have had troubleless

lives. You have fought hard battles, faced every challenge that has

come upon you, and kept going even when your goals seemed im

possible to reach. As you go on to the next chapter of your story,

remember that it is your story. Live it right.

Akshay Guttikonda

RIA TANDRA

Every single one of us has made an impact on each other. That

impact will be with us always through high school, college, and

throughout our whole lives. I truly believe happiness comes from

having a large, caring, close-knit family that I get right here at

Sycamore. We are a family of many people of many different per

sonalities and we see things a different way, in our own way. We

push each other to be the best we can and fight, laugh, and learn together every single day. We all have gifts that make us who we are

and those gifts bring us together. We embrace each other and truly

have gotten to know each other. Family is anyone that cares for you

and loves you unconditionally and in my eyes, I see amazing people

who have grown to be strong, talented individuals. The great Steve

Jobs once said “Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes, the ones who see

things differently. They’re not fond of rules. You can quote them,

disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you

can’t do is ignore them because they change things. They push the

human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to

think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” So, to

my fellow graduating class, let’s change the world together.

AKSHAY GUTTIKONDA

My Sycamore education has made the person I am today, ready

to take on whatever the world throws my way. This experience al

lows me to move forward and pursue my goals and dream for the

future, and has provided a great foundation for my education that

can be built upon. Along with the classes provided here at Syca

more, the extracurricular activities here have provided outlets for

me and my classmates to find our niche and passion. From De

bate to Science Bowl, Sycamore has offered a wide range of ac

tivities that has peaked our interests and paved our future. I will

remember these fond memories, from racing to find the answer

in MATHCOUNTS to winning the league in Sycamore tennis.

These extracurriculars have been amazing and truly a gift for all

of us, as I will never forget all these wonderful opportunities and

activities we participated in, here at Sycamore. n