It’s all crazy to me. Better, but it’s crazy. I’m about to turn 18 in a little more than a month and I’m graduating high school in one week. Senior year is over. I could’ve sworn I was just a freshman like a week ago, but now it’s over. To be honest, I don’t know what to feel, but as of right now, I could honestly say I’m content with how things are going for me right now.
I’m typing this on May 22. I’m sitting in my second-period English class taught by the LA River School’s very own, the famous Ms. KV. It’s amazing how much the students of this school love this teacher. She always goes all out just to help us. But anyway, later on in the day at 5 p.m., my school is going to be hosting what they call “Showcase Night.” It kind of sounds like a mini-festival and it’s also open to anybody who wants to come. And what do you know, since I’m an up-and-coming hip-hop artist, they’re going to let me perform tonight. Not only that, but they let me be in charge of providing the music for the night. I got some homies to help me, a DJ, and everything else that I know I’ma need. I’m excited for it to go down. Hopefully it goes as planned.
If you asked me how I was doing in the beginning of my high school days, I most likely would’ve cursed you out. I know, it sounds like I was a grumpy little fellow. That’s because I was. School wasn’t really my number one priority when high school started. I was just a knucklehead freshman trying to get by. Sophomore year came and it was horrible. My grades were in the toilet, and to be honest I didn’t really care. Not only that, but that was around the time I was fighting drug addiction…but that’s a whole different story that I’m not going to get into. Then came junior year and I spent it in a continuation school. Catching up on my credits and stuff like that. It was cool I guess. Now it’s the last chapter of my high school story, senior year. I came back to LA River after catching up on my credits. Now, I’m heavily stressing over graduating. I never thought that I would be stressing over school. It feels weird.
Now that I think about it, I could actually see how I have changed as a human being throughout these high school years. I went from a troubled kid with my middle fingers high up to everything, to a young adult that is trying to prove something to the world. As cliche as it sounds, I’m honestly very proud of myself. I never thought I would make it this far. But here I am, ready for any obstacle to come my way. I don’t know what to expect, but I’m ready. More ready than I have ever been. Even though the end is near, a new beginning is even closer. But until then, I’m just living in the moment.
–Alejandro Sanchez
Cool, I’m just starting my senior year in the fall!