I’ve been back to school for almost two weeks now, and so far, I can say that my senior year expectations were true to how the school year has started. There seems to be a new atmosphere around school, and maybe it’s just something I’m imagining, but the people I know all seem to be in a positive mood and are more relaxed about dealing with homework and usual daily obligations. This is refreshing, because we teenagers are usually characterized as complaining or apathetic.

Although this air of a more responsible, more accepting, and happier group of students is a new aspect, it mostly feels the same as previous years in high school. I’ve walked around the campus for a little over three years now, and the routine of seeing familiar faces in familiar settings seems to carry over each year. Sure, people grow up and change, some more than others, but the changes are not difficult to adapt to when the hundreds of people surrounding me are the same people I first saw as a freshman.

Or, perhaps there is so much change that it becomes routine in high school, and even the largest differences become commonplace and subtle in the mass of students. I guess a sure way of realizing change is to reflect on the changes I have been through since I started high school. I’ve gone through the typical change of growing a little taller, I hope I have matured a little, and most notably, I’ve learned what’s important in my life and even who I am.

My family and close friends have made my high school experience great, and their influence in my life is a major aspect of how I view high school. Besides the obvious educational focus, high school is an opportunity to learn from others. High school is also a time for me to realize my true interests and thoughts about my future. And my senior year is a time to wrap up the experiences and countless memories of high school, pack them in my luggage and get ready to head to college.

The classes I am taking this year serve as a bridge between high school and college. My teachers seem to focus more on lecturing and notes over busywork, much to my approval, and they generally expect more from me and other students, but trust that we’ll succeed. Although they place more responsibility on studying outside of class and focus less on class work, it helps to be given an extra push in motivation to not let them down, and to especially not let myself down.

It’s just the start of the school year, and I am already talking as though it is the end. Time is moving quickly, and the end of the year is closer than I expect. Senior year may feel different because of the excitement and the countdown to graduation, but it simply is a part of the routine of growing up and nearing adulthood. And with a routine, I need to get some sleep for tomorrow’s classes and live another great day, another mark on the calendar, which brings me closer to life’s next step.