I guess you don’t realize how real the college admission process is until the second quarter of your senior year. You’ve always known that it’s going to happen, but now that it’s actually happening, you start to reflect on your life and times in high school.

If the first thing that comes to mind when you think “The Harker School” isn’t something related to intelligence or academics, then you’re deep enough to look beyond that aspect of our school, or you’re just blissfully clueless about what goes on around you. Whichever one it is, we need more people like you on campus.

In my final year, I can confidently say that my best memory at Harker isn’t of getting a 100 percent on that one extremely difficult test (maybe that’s because it’s never happened). That isn’t to say that the classroom has been dull — some of my favorite experiences, such as blowing up gummy worms and playing trashcan basketball, took place in class. However, the moments I’ll cherish most after graduation are the ones on the basketball court, in the band room and with my friends, doing what we do as typical teenagers.

Above the pure genius of the people that surround me, the quality of education and even the food, I’ll miss the relationships I’ve formed in my time here. I’ll miss the person who told my father, “It’s an honor to know your son.” I’ll miss the person who said they’d take a bullet for me. I’ll miss that person who sang “Soft Kitty” to me when I needed them to.

If your only aim in school now is to graduate Harker with a perfect GPA, then your bow is pointed at the wrong target. In 15 years, you won’t even remember if you got a B in AP Euro. You’ll remember that time you would’ve gotten into trouble but escaped by the skin of your teeth. You’ll remember that time you had a riot with four people in the backseat of a Prius.

You’ll remember that time you were a crazy teenager exploring Harker. And you’ll smile.

This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on November 20, 2015.