Lockers slamming, bells ringing, hallway jams, and classes on opposite sides of the school welcomed me on my first day of 10th grade. 

     This first day was very different from last year, where I leisurely got out of bed at around 7:45 (now I’m on the bus to school an hour earlier), put on a sweatshirt, and logged on to my first of many Zoom classes of that year. COVID-19 totally transformed my freshman experience, and I wasn’t able to do many of the fun activities I was looking forward to. Now back at school as a sophomore, I’m excited to be able to do most of the things I was hoping to do last year, like going to football games, homecoming, and participating in spirit week. 

     However, I also have to figure out how to be a normal student once again. Being back at school, my biggest worry was, and still is, finding my classes and getting to them (almost) on time. Navigating the hallways proves to be very difficult, but I’m happy to say I’ve (almost) got it down. Once I can manage to find the 200s hallway without asking for help I should be good to go! 

     My classes are challenging, but I’ve found enjoyment in a few, my top favorites being Journalism, History, and Spanish. Online learning last year was tough, since the social aspect of school was very much hindered by not being physically at school, but the teachers were understanding and made the classes less work heavy. Nonetheless, now that we’re all back to school, the average workload has resumed, and it is a lot more than I’ve ever experienced.. When my math teacher told us we should be expecting 100 minutes of homework a night, I thought she was joking; now that I’m onto my third week of school, I know she was in fact not joking.

     Missing an in-person freshman year made the jump from middle school to high school difficult, but I’m thankful to be back in the building, and I’m learning how to manage my time after school to complete all my homework. I  never thought I would say how lucky I am to have had a typical first day, but here I am grateful for the chance of an amazing year.