I’ve done a lot of dumb stuff over my time at Sherwood. I competed in a watermelon eating contest and lost terribly, dressed up in embarrassing costumes for spirit days, did jokes in front of random people that only my friends and I found funny. I was loud, sometimes obnoxious, and overall spent a decent amount of my high school career just generally making a fool of myself. For some odd reason, though, I don’t regret a majority of the odd things I’ve done. While this might be because I lack self awareness or even shame, I like to optimistically hope it’s because of a much greater reason. Every time I did something during my high school years, I tried my best to fully commit to that action.

I think too many people in high school are afraid of committing to something, as if showing  enthusiasm or being really engaged is embarrassing. Just take our school-wide spirit days, where a majority of the Sherwood population simply watch the few people who do participate with critical eyes. This judgement can be seen in all kinds of other situations as well, such as participating in a class, or embracing things like a personally unique style. High school should be a time to experiment with interests and self-expression, not shy away from and be ashamed of it. Too many people are afraid to break from the herd in any way shape or form at the risk of being judged or gossiped about.

You don’t have to do something extreme and crazy, or break any big social barriers, but you should try and do something that might be a little bit embarrassing at first but that you can fully commit to. While yes, I did a lot of random, unrelated things, this philosophy also helped me when it came to auditioning for theatre or Rock N Roll, both things I ended up with leads in. I fully committed to helping with the film club and newspaper, both of which I also still do. Finally, I made the big decision to commit to being the Class of 2025 graduation speaker. True, not everything I did went perfectly, but they were all a worthwhile experience. So do everything you want to and can with everything you got, and who cares if you draw attention, or even make a fool of yourself? You’re going to be out of here in at most four years anyways, so try to enjoy yourself.