This is it. My last ever article for The IHS Tattler. It feels like just yesterday when I wrote my first! For days now, all I could think of was this moment. Now that it’s here, I have to make this article my best. So here it goes.
I love IHS. There, a brilliant thesis statement—well, maybe I should give some context first. With this being my last ever article for a newspaper I hold close to my heart, I wouldn’t want to write anything other than a tribute to this school. For four years, I have looked forward to walking in the doors every morning. There is a unique feeling of walking through the halls of IHS that I simply cannot explain. You only know what I mean if you’ve felt it yourself. The environment here is so special.
There are many teachers here who are hidden gems, unbelievable characters who come to life when their students enter their classrooms. This is their life, and they are devoted to interacting and forming positive relationships with their students. They also, however, have values of their own and are not afraid to share them, and the respect they give their students is only a compensation for the respect their students give them. I can name specific teachers who have impacted my life in unimaginably positive ways, and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to learn from them at IHS—I know that there aren’t teachers like them at any other high school.
My absolute favorite part of my days at IHS has been the beautiful, smart, unique individuals whom I am honored to call my friends. The people who have accepted me and whom I’ve grown to know and love. This wasn’t something that I experienced in any part of my life before. In elementary and middle school, people were generally shallow and could not be trusted. At IHS, however, everyone has matured in some way, and almost everyone I have met here over the years has become an amazing person. I respect these people, and while friendships like these are formed at most high schools, I know that the people I have bonded with could never be found anywhere else. It is mind-blowing to think about, and it makes me so grateful.
Granted, I am being naïve here; there have been boring days, bad teachers, and rude people. I definitely have my own examples, and I have considered them thoughtfully. However, as an optimist and a positive person, I have chosen to generalize from all of the glorious days I’ve had here that have vastly outnumbered the worse. I know that the exceptions to my wonderful days at IHS are worth neither the time, nor the thought. One thing that is particularly special to me about my experience here is that, while there have been subpar times, not once have I felt threatened or sad to go to school. Not once. When I think of all the kids around the world who feel these ways about school, I feel so grateful that IHS has been such an amazing experience for me overall. When I think of yet more children who are deprived of schooling so that they can work to support their families, I am yet more grateful for this opportunity.
While many people can and will disagree with what I’ve just written, I hope that this resonates with others. All in all, I have absolutely adored my time at this school, and if I could redo it all over again, I wouldn’t skip a beat. These four years have been a time of immense intellectual, social, and emotional growth for me and for many others, and if I can persuade anyone to just be grateful and recognize all of the beauty of IHS, then I will have done my job. I love you, IHS.