By Cal Wilson ’14

Preschool is the time when kids are rounded up and forced to collectively learn inside a building for the first time. Elementary school is when everyone is cool with each other and important basic information and strategies that will be used for the rest of their lives are taught. Middle school is when awkward preteens and adolescents deal with early symptoms of puberty, stress of increased school work, and complex relationships between their peers. The four years of high school, however, are trying times, where students mature most physically, mentally and socially. The difference between high school freshmen and seniors is enormous, but the changes are slow and slight at first.

Like all seniors, I am very different now compared to who I was when I first stepped into the halls of Sherwood. I believe I have changed for the better from the four uncontrollably wild years I have had at this school. I have participated in a range of extracurricular activities throughout my time here, including Ultimate Frisbee Club, Rock N’ Roll, homecoming halls and Mr. Sherwood. But without a doubt, the thing that I am most happy about my high school experience is that I found groups I knew I belonged in. I found families here at Sherwood that revealed to me more about myself than I could ever do alone.

Being the naïve 8th grader I was when filling out my first high school course registration form, I signed up for journalism thinking that I would learn how to write more engaging fictional stories. This mistake turned out to be the best one of my life when I found myself with the same great teacher and peers for four straight years on the newspaper. The corporate work structure and deadlines within the Newspaper room exposed me to what life after high school is like in an office while the small class size brought me close to those on the staff. Belonging to a class that only 50 people are a part of gave me a sense of exclusivity from the rest of the students at this school.

Joining the wrestling team my sophomore year was the other decision that further improved my high school career. Wrestling is the only high school sport I participated in, but it is the highlight of my years here at Sherwood. Spending so much time in a hot, damp wrestling room touching other sweaty guys brought us all closer together (you have to be a wrestler to understand). The labor, time and dedication that wrestling required makes everything else easy in comparison, and earning the Sportsmanship Award as a captain my senior year was the best way to end my final season of wrestling.

The point I am trying to make is that being in high school is a growing experience to learn who you are, and the people you become associated with are the ones who will teach you most during high school.