Dear Class of 2017,

Its towards the end of the year now, and soon you'll officially be a senior. While you might think "finally, only one more year till I'm outta here", but trust me, slow down a bit and appreciate the things around you. Look at it this way, its your last year of being a kid. 

Don't Rush Through the Year

Trust me on this one. Ever since school started I was thinking "goodness, I can't wait to leave", and I admit that I thought about it too much. Don't  make the same mistake I did. Thinking that made me into a more grumpy person who cared less and less. Take things slow.

Spend Plenty of Time with Your Friends

Especially with the ones you won't see after graduation. The memories you make with them will put more of impression on you and them and create a stronger bond for when you do leave each other.

Don't Be Afraid to Lose Friends

I have many friends that are a year older than me, I found that when they went to college, even the local community college, that our friendship became lost. The transition between high school and college is very different and stressful. People grow up, and they may decide to let your friendship go (or vice versa). Don't harp on them, its easier to just move on. And don't worry, your true friends will still be there.

Spend Time with Family

If you're going away for college, you won't see your family practically everyday like you do now. Take the time to enjoy stories with your family. Get engaged with something, or go do something fun spontaneously with them. And do things for them if they're feeling stressed. Oh, and you will miss grandma's homemade meals when you're away for college (jus' sayin)

Get those College Apps/Scholarships In and In Fast

The sooner you get them in, the more dedicated you look to the decision committees. But don't rush to put them together. Take the time to evaluate the application too. (Remember - Scholarships=Free Moolah)

Don't Fall Behind In School

Senioritis causes a serious lack of motivation, don't let that take over your schoolwork. Colleges still look at your final transcripts. 

Stay Involved with School Activities

Staying involved with school activities keeps you engaged more with your classmates and the underclassmen. You also stay in touch with the coaches and advisors, which can result in some bomb reference letters. Plus, in many activities there are some awesome senior privileges.

Take Lots of Pictures

When the Timehop notification pops up, looking at those pictures take you back to those special moments, and may brighten your day down the road.

Listen Carefully to Your Teachers, Counselors, and Senior Class Advisors

Don't Forget to Breathe
Between graduation, college prep, schoolwork, and everything else, things will get hectic. The important thing is to breathe, relax, and think things through logically.

Enjoy Yourself

Overall, the most important thing about senior year is to enjoy the year. Make sure to wear a smile whenever you can and have fun!

Senior year is bittersweet, its sad to see all those last times come to an end, but it's awesome to know that you are moving on to better things. Even though the idea of "moving to the next chapter" isn't far away, value your the time you have left.

Rock out your senior year, Class of 2017!

Two. Two more days till May, 27 days left of school, and 36 days till graduation. 36. Thirty Six.

At this point, I believe that I've hit the climax of senioritis, which is no other than the time crunch. Graduation isn't years or months away, its weeks. Only a few more weeks till I'm no longer a high school student. Believe it or not, it's scary.

Don't get me wrong, I am excited to graduate. I'm excited to move on to the next chapter in the book of my life, but I can't believe the the time is coming closer for me to turn that page. 

Now, when I say time crunch, I really do mean time crunch. Seriously, I feel that majority of what I do nowadays is in a deadline-induced panic. Writing my last dual-enrollment English paper, turning in scholarships, telling myself I need to make my graduation invitations sooner or later, everything at once just needs to get done.

All the last times have already happened, last homecoming, last marching band season, last state conference, last prom; the only thing left to do is graduate.

June 3rd, that'll be the day everything is done, completed, finished. Scary, right?

You're probably reading this thinking that I'm worrying too much about this, and I would agree. Sometimes I need to tell myself to breathe. I deserve this diploma that I worked so hard for. Even though things are "done" on June 3rd, it only leaves room for a new beginning. When the Class of 2016 graduates, we all will travel to different places to fulfill exactly what we want to do with our lives.

I just want to say, for any graduating senior, it will all be alright. Don't second guess yourself, don't stress too much, and just breathe. You know exactly what choices are best for your future. And, its time to celebrate! Be happy of your accomplishment, and be excited for your next chapter.

What I've noticed with senioritis is that it comes with a dwelling depression. There are days that I feel totally not motivated to do anything. I seriously don't know why. Am I sad to leave? Am I afraid to be gone? Honestly, I haven't figured it out. But the best thing for this feeling is to be around your friends. Sometimes my family can get annoying (sorry fam if your reading this, I still love you <3), but my friends keep me upbeat and that's when I'm truly the happiest. I've noticed within my friends is that even though we pick on each other and make fun, we really do want the best for each other and we want all of us to be happy.

But what scares me is that I won't be able to see them as often as I do today. While it scares me and probably scares a lot of other seniors, I know that things will be fine. Real friends will keep in touch, and when you're in college (or wherever you may be) you'll be surrounded by a new group of people, which only opens up to making new friends. (Plus social media is a wonderful thing).

Now this blogpost might just be me reminding myself, but what I basically wanted to say was don't stress. Don't stress on the future, and don't stress on the past. Everything will fall into place and be exactly how you want them to be. And in the end, it will all be okay.

Just hang in there. :)

-mb.

(Sorry I haven't written in awhile, you know, senioritis and such.)