Senior emphasizes the importance of being passionate

about the things that matter to me. There is considerable pressure to fit in while in high school, to wear the same clothes, to talk the same, to have the same interests and to value the same things.

So, choosing to care about your own individual interests can make a difference in both your high school experience and in your future.

NORA LEVY sports editor

I made many choices as I went through my daily life at WHS and I would argue that the most important choice I made throughout my time was to care

Do not let people make you feel small or insignificant for what matters in your life and do not change your priorities to what may be seen as cool.

If you care about politics, be politically active. If you care about the environment, try to make our school a cleaner place. If you care about sports, put time into sports. If you care about learning, make every effort to soak in as much information as you can during your time in high school.

I know my life has been enriched exponentially by choosing to care about the activities that have mattered to me. Not only did I spend high school doing things I liked to do, but I also met classmates, coaches and teachers who have made a positive impact on my life.

My favorite high school memories come from the extra effort I put into basketball, like waking up at 5 a.m. to shoot and lift before school, while everyone else was still sleeping and staying late after practice to shoot and spend time with my teammates. Without a doubt, if I had not chosen to put effort and care into both basketball and my academic life, I would not have the opportunities that I have in front of me as I enter college at the University of Chicago.

As I look back on my four years, I have the same cliche thought that many have, high school flies by before you know it.

I am happy with how I lived my high school experience, what I chose to care about and the people that I spent my time with.

So, if I can offer anything to the students behind me, please know that it is cool to care. I am happy and content because of my choice to care and I cannot wait to live my college life in the same way I lived it during high school: unapologetically caring about the things I value.

Oregon Trail teaches lessons Saying goodbye opens a new chapter

trustworthy people. In the game, you go down the trail with your wagon party. Because you will be spending so much time with your wagon party, it is important to choose your travel companions carefully. You should choose people who will help contribute to the well-being of the wagon party.

The same goes for life. Befriend people who will contribute to the well-being of your emotional wagon party and bring out the best in you. Remember: friends do not let friends ford the river, so surround yourself with people who are good for you.

My favorite game is The Oregon Trail

The game is based on the real life Oregon Trail, a 2,170 mile wagon route that around 500,000 people traveled during the mid19th century as a part of manifest destiny, according to the Bureau of Land Management.

The first version of the game was released in the 1970s, and since then, has evolved into a very elaborate game. The version that I play is available through Apple Arcade.

I love the game so much that I have played a total of over 80 hours. Throughout the time that I have spent playing The Oregon Trail, I have learned a lot; not just about the history of the trail, but some life lessons as well. So, without further ado, I present my senior column, entitled “Everything I learned in life I learned from playing The Oregon Trail.”

The first lesson that one can learn from playing this game is to surround yourself with good,

The second lesson I have learned from my time playing The Oregon Trail is about hygiene. On the trail, if you do not keep yourself clean, you might contract a disease, such as cholera or dysentery.

Although you are very unlikely to get either of those diseases in the 21st century, you should still bathe regularly for the good of yourself and the people around you.

The third and most important lesson I have learned from The Oregon Trail is about survival.

The trail will throw many crazy things your way, but you gotta keep moving on, because it will all be worth it when you reach the beautiful state of Oregon. Life will throw a lot of craziness your way, which I know from experience, but you have to keep moving forward, because it will be worth it when you reach your goals.

Thanks for reading– not just this story, but all of the stories I’ve written for BLADE –and if you have Apple Arcade, give The Oregon Trail a go, I promise it is worth it.

Childhood cliche of stepping out of your comfort zone applies to later life

to, “do one thing every day that scares you,” to which I thought, “now why would you do that?!

Who enjoys being scared?”

I have learned, throughout the last four years specifically, that it is important to be scared or uncomfortable at some points in my life because it is often the time in which I find the most grown within myself .

MOLLY BYRNE cover editor

As a young child, I remember being told by adults in my life

I have a vivid memory of junior year, the month of Homecoming, when one of my close friends wanted to ask a boy to the dance. She agonized about the best way to ask him for days, and finally, she went to his locker one day after class and flat out asked him to go with her.

When she was telling me about the interaction later that week, I remember thinking that I wished I was like her, I wish I was that bold and unafraid of others opinions. Since then, I have thought about this memory at many points in the last year: to be bold and stick to it.

I have learned, over the past number of years, that being afraid of others’ opinions and shying away from what I really want, because of the fear of being uncomfortable, only hurts one person in the end… me . Nobody wants to put themselves in an uncomfortable situation, of course, but taking risks that may feel uncomfortable at the time or make you scared, normally have a larger payoff than playing it safe and obeying the opinions of others.

When selecting from my college choices, I vividly remember how the words of my family or friends affected me when I said I was going to apply exclusively to out of state schools. It was a risk, moving far away, starting over in a new place.

But to me, it was exciting; yes, of course, it was scary and the thought of something going horribly wrong kept me up some nights. But, what scared me more was never trying, just taking the easy way out and never even trying to move out of state.

My advice to you is that regardless of the opinion of others, it is okay to be scared and it is okay to be bold because playing something safe will never truly be as rewarding as chasing after what you really want.