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06/06/07 The Year Overall/ WHY THIS WEEK?
I'm writing to you all while waiting in line for my yearbook. It's right now 3:00 and the pass out books around 3:30. While I'm waiting, I'll just say what I feel about this year and how is compares to the last four years.
Looking this year in review, I am shocked to see how much I have accomplished. I'm a rare species of senior; I start my day around 6:00 am to take a shower, eat food, pack up and leave. I usually come back home around 4:30 pm after taking a friend home. I lay around the house for about two hours, thinking to myself,"I need to start homework." and usually end up not doing anything. I would finish the work at school. This has been my pattern the entire year. And on the weekends, I would see if anyone is up to anything. If they were, I would go and if not, just sleep and relax. This pattern worked until American Sign Language started at De Anza. After ASL, I caught the terrible illnes known as "Senioritis". So now, because of it, I find myself working my ass off on the very last week of high school. I'll survive. I know I'm going to acheive at least three A's. I just can't wait for next week, where I get to where the cap and gown and take that short walk of extreme acheivement. Now, how does this compare to the last three years of my life.
My worst year would definitely be my junior year. In the begining of that year, my step-father was diagnosed with third stage esophageal cancer, an illness that only ten percent of people survive. My mother was too overwhelmed to help me with school. Sis had to leave for year first year in college. My bio-father lives in Virginia, so he couldn't do much. I was basically starting to walk on water. If that wasn't bad enough, I had a teacher that was destined to fail me. Now that I look back, I do need to thank other teachers who helped me through that year and I also need to thank my Bio-father. Before my junoir year started, I was visiting him. During my trip there, he showed me the church. He wanted to bring me to church every week. At first, I was a bit nervous because I didn't know anyone who went there. Then I discovered that church had a welcoming community. When I came home, I told my mother that we needed to start going to church. We found the Los Altos United Methodist Church, where Dirk and Carol Damonte lead the youth ministry. In the middle of the year, I realized that I could count on them for support. Dad, thank you for helping me find new friends.
Freshman year wasn't full of gift baskets either. When I entered the year, I was basically an outcast. I was too personal about every little detail. If anyone was to say something that was wrong, I would scream at them, tell them that your wrong and that it should be this. I was acting as if I was 12. That would make me more of an outcast. I have no more words to say for this year, for memory does not srve well.
Sophmore year was the best of the three. I acheived a GPA of 3.71, which would turn out to be my highest. I had no trouble with teachers, made friends through the drama dept. I found a place in school for the first time. I felt like I existed.
If there are people that I have met these past four years that have really impacted me, they would be Reid Kostner, a current Sophmore at UNC, and Poncho Morris, a freshman in UCLA. I haven't talk to them much since they left high school, but they really helped me find my inner peace.
I am going to greive, not because want to, but I have to. I'm going to miss being in high school and seeing faces I would associate with. I will miss teachers who really cared and helped me through work and life. I HATE BITTERSWEET EVENTS!!!
Well, I'm sure as hell am not going to the year on this note, so see me thursday for the finale. It is a surprise I cannot say.
This is Schaffy signing off.
