Chloe

[|My High School Years]

My high school years where should I start?

Let's rewind back to 2008 in Pflugerville, Texas. Yes, Pflugerville, Texas. It's quite a quirky name right? I only got spend a year there with my friends before I found out I was moving to North Carolina. I grew up in Texas, and it was my home. At first, I was devastated that I would have to leave al that familiarity. Though, after awhile I got used to the idea of moving to a new place. I was actually excited for all the new places and all the new people I would meet.

This move characterized a large part of my high school life. The first thing I noticed about north Carolina was he trees and the landscape. I thought it was beautiful, it was really really different from the dry flat plains of Texas. Though the first day of school was traumatic to say the least, after a few weeks I started becoming really comfortable because of all the nice people I has met. As "the new kid," surrounded by tight knit, pre-established cliques, it's kinda hard to find a place to fit in. But I found home in the sports and clubs that I was in. The girls on the tennis team were the first friends I made here at Green Hope, followed by classmates and club members. In retrospect, I was actually really lucky my first year here. I don't remember ever feeling like I was alone or had no one to talk to. And in fact, I was actually pretty active in Green Hope activities.. from salsa night to prom.. Green Hope was definitely treating me well.

Besides the new people, living on the east coast was also a big change for me. Hopping around from Arizona, to California, to Texas, and everywhere in between, I was really curious to see how different it was, if it was any different at all. In addition to the landscape, I noticed the weather and the proximity of all the new places I can visit. Now, my family travels to all the places I had hope to go to a couple years ago. Virigina, DC, New York, places like that.

Actually, going to new places has always been a big part of my school years. And I'm really lucky to have gone to the places I have. In 9th grade, I went on a school trip to Harvard for a debate tournament. Yes.. Harvard. It wasn't as big of a deal as it sounds though. While I was in Texas, I got to go to the Duke TIP summer program. I actually met someone there who I found out later lives in Cary. Now, he goes to Panther Creek and we still keep in touch. It's a small world right? Finally, last summer I got the opportunity to travel to China through NC State. It was an amazing experience that I'm likely never to forget.

And through it all is my family, important in not just my life in high school, but my whole life in general.. my family has always been there for me. They suffer under my complaints, they laugh with me, and the support me. I'm a strong believer in always remembering whose shoulders you're standing on. And in my case, a lot of credit goes towards my mom, my dad, and my sister. Because i'm the only one of my cousins to have moved away from Texas, I get the chances to visit Texas and see my family every December. This is always the highlight of my year.

Sometimes I wonder what high school would have been like if I had stayed at Hendrickson High School in Texas. I wouldn't have met all the people I did, I wouldn't have seen all the places I did, and I definitely wouldn't have learned allt he things I did. I've enjoyed my year at Green Hope, and I'm looking forward to next year as well.