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Dear Pine Crest,

You can think about the future all you want, plan it out in your head, predict what is going to happen, but when the future inexorably morphs into the present, it continuously manages to take you by surprise. At least that is what happened to me.

I can honestly say that these past years in high school have been a blur. There are certain memories that stand out for me when I think back on my experience in the Upper School. My friends Lindsay, Sara, and I have been taking the same picture in the exact same pose every year during Homecoming, and we can’t wait to take the fourth and final picture to complete the tradition. I remember sitting in Mrs. Wing’s class as she marked the 50^th tally on the board, meaning that she would be baking a batch of her famous chocolate chip cookies for us. I remember the exhilarating and accomplished feeling of standing on the Stacy stage with my peers, one hand up to the sky, as we belted out “One Day More” in Pine Crest’s rendition of Les Miserables.

There are the good memories and the bad memories. The things that you want to hold on to, and inevitably the things you wish to forget. I can’t say for one second that high school was comprised of all good memories, all things I want to remember. Every tough decision, every internal conflict, every fight, every tear, were they worth it? I think we all have those moments where we wish it were easier, where we want to erase our mistakes and hold back the tears…sometimes we just want to give up. But, when I think about where I am now, how far I have come, I get this sense of satisfaction. I can guarantee that I didn’t always make the right decision, I didn’t always say the appropriate thing, mark the correct response on a test. But through it all, somehow, unknowingly, I’ve learned more about myself than I ever thought I could, and to me, that’s the most valuable part of this whole experience.

I remember walking into my first newspaper meeting as an apprehensive, soft-spoken freshman. Everything was so new to me, so different, and, to be honest, quite overwhelming. As the year progressed, I found my place on staff, and discovered the joy of speaking up at the meetings and sharing my thoughts to the PC community. There was a part of me that saw a future in what I was doing, and I found myself mentally crafting the aspirations of one day becoming an editor-in-chief of the paper.

As I said before, the future is a world of obscurity and uncertainty, and the unknown is infinite. But I can say one thing for sure, and that is, you can always try. You can try to craft your future, try to mold it and shape it the way you want it to be. And no, it may not turn out exactly how you want it to turn out, but it wouldn’t be any fun if things always went as planned. There’s a pure sense of exhilaration in handing in that editor application, auditioning for the play, trying out for the volleyball team, starting a new hobby, sending in college applications. Maybe it doesn’t turn out as planned, but maybe it does. And the future, the unknown, is more exciting than ever.

I can’t wait to see where the newspaper goes, and I hope that you will go on this thrilling journey with us as we transition into our second month of publication.

Your Co-Editor-in-Chief of Type One,

Alexis Kesselman