School provides a journey to self acceptance

about me was a hard task.

It took unlearning a lot of negative things about myself.

I had to replace all the negative feelings about myself with happy, good thoughts.

Over time, I began to do things for myself instead of others. I began to dye my hair and dress in the clothes I wanted to dress in, whether it was sweatpants and a t-shirt or really cute clothes I just bought.

second mom to me and has been one of my biggest supporters.

The Hiners have also been there for me through a lot, whether they knew it or not, and I have relied on them for a lot.

Mrs. Broda gave me a safe space of sorts in her class, where I never felt ashamed of who I am and was always able to be my true self.

Looking back on my four years of high school, I acknowledge that I have made many mistakes.

Be that failing to prepare for a test, arriving late to countless events, or not fully cherishing my time here.

However, the one thing that I know was not a mistake was participating in as many activities as possible.

During my time at WHS, I was on the cross country, track, and speech and debate teams, on top of being a member of Drama Club, band, choir and The Wooster Blade staff.

While my involvement and dedication varied from activity to activity, from a four-year varsity member and captain of the cross country team to joining choir for the second semester of my senior year, each experience has taught me countless life lessons and has molded me into who I am today.

From these activities, I have learned valuable lessons in leadership, humility and time management.

I have gained confidence in myself and my voice, and have

Perhaps the most crucial skill I learned was the ability to take a step back and enjoy the moment. Looking back at the path that led to a certain situation makes that moment so much more special. While my life was certainly hectic at times, I cannot imagine my high school experience without those crazy moments. My advice to others is to find what makes you happy. Be that one activity or ten, dive in and make the most out of your time, but do not forget to take a breath every once in a while to just look around and cherish the moment.

Learning to express myself and love who I am took a long time. I have always felt like a weird kid or even a social outcast and I did not feel like I really belonged anywhere.

Learning to be me and not worry about what other people thought

However, the journey I went on to figure it out would have been way harder without some of the adults in my life. I want to give a special thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Hiner, Mrs. Broda, Mrs. Grayshock, and Mrs. Mason. They have all become major parts of my life, and I don’t know where I would be without them all.

Mrs. Grayshock is almost like a

Mrs. Mason, while only being her second year here, has made such an impact on me and my love of music, which has become one of my major outlets for creativity. If I leave this school with just one piece of advice, it is to be yourself. Find friends and teachers who are there for you and let you be unapologetically you.

Never pretend to be someone you are not because as I know very well, it can and will eat you up inside. It is just not worth it.