If I had to go back in time and give my baby eighth grade self some advice, it would be to make the most of the time you have. Everyone tells you at the beginning of high school that it goes in a blink of an eye, and while I didn’t believe them at first, as we quickly approach graduation, I understand what they meant.
They meant that, even though this school is where you have found some of your best friends and although it became your second home, you will be leaving it. And this school has become my second home. Not the whole building obviously, but there are rooms that you walk in and know you belong. For me personally, I have had two main “homes-away-from-home” at PHS.
The first one happens to be the first room I walked into at PHS: the band room. When I started playing the clarinet in fifth grade, I had no idea where it was going to take me, but I am so glad it ended up being the Big Red Band. I have known since before my first day of high school that if I needed somewhere to go that the band room was open to me. I have made so many memories and got to do so many once-in-a-lifetime things while in this program. So, I want to thank Mr. White and all of the other band people that have supported me throughout high school. Without this group of people, I would not be who I am today and for that I am forever grateful.
The second home I found at PHS was more unexpected. It was Mrs. Koreski’s room, 311C. On a whim in eighth grade, I signed up for a journalism class and it completely changed my life. While I wasn’t sure at first that it was the place for me, I learned that there was nowhere else I’d rather be. There has very rarely been a dull moment in this room, whether it be the stress of a yearbook deadline, the joy of submitting the book or even the sounds of four chatty newspaper seniors, our room has never been dull. Even on the quietest days, you could still feel the life of the room. A lot of that life is us, the students, but Koreski deserves some credit too. She has become one of my favorite teachers and I am so glad I happened to sign up for her class. I have met some of my best friends in this room and have had the honor of getting to be a part of something bigger than myself because of that. As we built the yearbook or published the stories of the school on the newspaper site, I know that even though it is our work, it is also a part of history. The history of the school, yes, but also the history of our lives. I know that the experiences I have had in this classroom will follow me throughout the rest of my life and I would not have it any other way. I have loved getting to learn and grow as a person (and as a journalist) in high school, and I am so glad I got to be in 311C for so much of my journey.
As I prepare to leave PHS now that graduation is almost here, I realize it’s not the big moments I’ll miss most — it’s the little ones. Walking into the band room before school, hearing conversations fill 311C and simply being surrounded by people who became family.
Before I wrap up my final article (that is once again, longer than it was supposed to be), I just want to say thank you one more time, to PHS, Mr. White, Mrs. Koreski and of course everyone else who helped me get to this point.
PHS alumni always say, “Once a Big Red, Always a Big Red,” and as I am about to join the long list of graduates, I understand now that I will always be a Big Red, no matter where life takes me.
