september 28th 2026
with the 1st quarter of my junior year coming to an end, i've truly been reflecting on the experiences i've faced over these past two years in high school. in each semester, there have been so many different things that have built me into who i am now. looking back at freshman eula is strange in so many way because, in a variety of aspects, i'm still so much of her, but then at the same time i'm a completely different person. when i think back to my freshman year i first think of how much i disliked it at first lol. since i was transferring, i knew that going to a new school wouldn't be easy, but i also didn't expect it to hit me as hard as it did. i had a lot of upperclassmen friends and some people from dance, so i thought i would be pretty decent at finding a place. however, i soon realized that the people i knew had other people in their lives and their own friend groups. for the first couple of weeks i spent lunch in the bathroom or hid out in my dance teacher's class lol.
despite the very rough start, by the end of september i had met some people that i'd soon spend the majority of my time with! by the end of school i had tried new things and met new people, but i still felt as though i was still very much within my comfort zone. although i hadn't fully branched out yet, i learned how important it is to give change time. i used to have a problem with being incredibly impatient when it came to adapting, especially in my freshman year. i wanted to find a group of people that i could open up and be best friends with IMMEDIATELY. i didn't really understand that in order to build those kinds of friendships, i had to give myself time to get to know people and meet others. that really applies to everything that i was looking for when coming into high school. the clubs, sports, teacher relationships, friends, and even just where my classes were. by the end of the year i had become familiar with all these things and in no way was i still the same girl that was scared of all the new circumstances that i once was. freshman year is one that i really look back at and just smile. as time passed it easily became one of my favorite years of high school so far. regardless of the new setting and all of the change happening i still was able to learn from it and even end the year on a high note!
freshman year eula at my academy's end-of-the-year awards day :)
now sophomore year...what a whirlwind. second semester started off alright. first, i made it into my high school's cheer team after not cheering since elementary. i also made our JV competition team, which was something i was completely unfamiliar with (mind you, i'm a competitive dancer and had not even touched a cheerleading mat prior). even with not really knowing what i was getting myself into, i had a blast at the end of it! i had found a friend group for the first time and really felt happy. i was also getting involved in a bunch of different extracurriculars after being able to familiarize myself better. i had really piled my schedule up during this year in an effort to put myself out there more and to try new things. however, even though i had so much on my plate already, i still wasn't focused on the right things. with this, the majority of my sophomore year was spent melancholy and distracted (stupidly so)!! by the middle of second semester, i had fallen out with so many people and had pretty much gone through one of the hardest times of my 16 years of life so far lol. but coming out of that, i genuienly learned and gained so much!
i found my school's Bible club, and through Jesus the people in it truly helped pick me up. God really has such a funny way in His divine timing and purpose. He covered me in His blessings even after all of the nonsense i had brought into my own life and i still can't really fathom that completely. through this club, i found friends that truly loved me and brought me closer to Him. which at this rough patch in my life, God truly knew i needed. they became more than just people i saw at school but genuinely my brothers and sisters in Christ. by the end of sophomore year, i had found my spark again after having dimmed it for so long. despite all of the craziness that was happening, i was continuously being grounded. my family and the word of God were (and are) the only things that gave me the strength to be able to get over things as quickly as i did. who am i without my Lord and my family, like fr?? not even a month after things had gone down, i was now in disneyland with my family, which was followed by being able to tour one of my dream colleges?? our Father is just genuinely that good :)) then after that i would start my first paid internship during spring break. AND then after that i would get to end my school year with a bts concert (thanks to the best big sisters in the world)!! the end of sophomore year truly outweighed every negative thing that happened prior π©·
now, one of the biggest things i really took away from sophomore year (i have manyy takeaways from this year) is that life is really what you make it to be. this world has really normalized the concept of focusing on all the negative things. hardship is, of course, inevitable in life, but i think we’ve gotten wayyy too comfortable dwelling on it for too long. the great thing about dark times is that, in some way, shape, or form, light comes back (romans 8:18)! my family always talks about how we have a “5-day grace period.” if something goes wrong or hardship comes, then we can grieve for five days. then, when those days come to an end, it’s time to get back to work and take care of what you need to. time doesn’t stop when something goes wrong in our lives, and in many ways, that’s a blessing. in every experience, interaction, and situation that happens in our lives, there's a lesson that we can learn from and take with us as we continue our journeys. so why choose to stay stuck in the hole of self-pity and negativity when you can take those events and turn them into stepping stones? in conclusion of my long yap lol, there’s so much more for your life than the things that you think are too hard to handle. no drama, breakup, argument, fallout, injury, or difficulty should define what your life becomes. there’s so much more beyond the hard moments, and that feeling like "the world is gonna end" or "my life is over" is just temporary (it's just a feeling after all) :) go listen to that song! have a movie night with your sisters! everything is exactly what you make of it, so choose to move on and choose to be better because you’re strong enough to !!
sophomore year me achieving one of the biggest goals i set for myself in high school! now finally, as a junior (still can't believe I'm an upperclassman) i've changed so much and learned so many different things that freshman me would be appalled if she saw me. right now as the eula whos a little bit older and wiser (but whos also still very much learning in every way possible) i've become familiar with being more grateful and happy about my negative experiences than i do bitter about them. i ALSO have learned that putting your care and effort into the right things is the KEY to getting through high school. i was initially going to say "not caring" is the key, but i don't think that encapsulates what I'm trying to get across. by putting your care and effort into the "right things" i mean the things that will help you grow, mature, and make your mark. yes you should care about your grades! yes you should care about your social networking and getting out there! but where i think you don't need to put your care into is the concept of performing for other people's perception of you. i used to really want to make sure that everyone was happy with who i am and that i wasn't perceived as weird or out of place. but as i've gone through high school, i've realized i really have no control over that lol! no matter what you do, what you wear, what you participate in, or who you talk to, people always have something to say! it's a cliche concept but it's so true. being yourself and proudly so is so much more peaceful than trying to please and follow everyone else. i really encourage whoever is reading this to be set apart because trying to fit into everyone elses standards and this worlds standards only lets you go so far.
anywaysss i could talk forever lol! but, i love you guys and i hope you were able to resonate with this in some way <3 God is good all the time and all the time God is gooddd. i promise i'll try to write more often :) so so much love!
- e.k
