The end of the first marking period marks the end of a quarter of the school year. The transition from summer into school is always tough, but over these last few months so much has happened. For the first time in many years, our school hosted a Fall Homecoming Dance. Accompanied by a DJ, photo booth, and food, this year’s Homecoming was a great success with its theme “Under the Stars.” In terms of sports this marking period, our girls hockey team made it to the semi-finals in states. The volleyball team is still competing, with their participation in the finals today at 4:30 at Montville High School. Bottle Hill Day was Bottle Hill Day, as always, except for when the Kona Ice Truck was sold out… Aside from that, some notable stands include the “Why We Shouldn’t Be In The UN” stand, no further comment on that though.
As a senior, this first marking period has been especially stressful with all the early action college deadlines intertwined with the countless assessments and assignments from my five AP classes. It’s been a little rocky, but I’ve hit a rhythm and I think a lot of people have already found their rhythm as well. Barely scraping out A’s has taught me a few things. The first is not to stretch yourself too thin, especially when it comes to college applications. Towards the beginning of the marking period, I was balancing the completion of my common app application with 8 other early action deadlines, an abnormally competitive varsity sport, and five AP classes worth of work and assignments. I realized that you can’t always do everything to the best of your ability; there will always be sacrifices and you don’t have to be ashamed to make them. The second thing I realized is that nothing really, really matters. Every decision you make doesn’t shape who you are or what type of future you will have. That one B+, or 70 on a test will not destroy your chances of college admissions.
With the second marking period already upon us, I’m ready to use all I learned from this first marking period to really excel in my sports, academics, and applications. I can already see the College Deadline Party approaching (you can also look out for my January 1 College Deadline article that I will surely write). Winter sports we can look forward to are, of course, indoor track and field, basketball, wrestling, and swimming. Good luck to all our athletics teams with their seasons and their health!