These past four years have been a ride—one that was infinitely long yet ended abruptly. Throughout my high school life, I went through my highest highs and lowest lows, mentally, academically, and socially, but despite the lows, I would do it all over again. If I could go through it again and go back to my 2019 freshman self though, there is one thing that I would change.

I honestly don’t remember much about my freshmen year, let alone the first couple of days, but I can say that I wanted to change. In middle school I was a super quiet, shy, introverted kid. Venturing out of my comfort zone was extremely scary, but I knew that I wanted to change that in my new environment.

While I do think that I’ve grown to be a little more outgoing, making this change and conscious effort took a long time to truly happen. And by a long time, I mean years. Especially with online learning, it took a while to put myself out there and meet new people, and it certainly didn’t happen in one day, week, month, or even year. That said, looking back, I think there were more things I could’ve done to put myself out there more, and it started with a simple “yes.”

I always felt like there was this barrier, this obstacle that prevented me from speaking up or saying yes to things. Even if I had the answer to a question in class, or wanted to say something in a conversation, there was always that thought in the back of my head that prevented me from doing so. And there were times that I did overcome it. I’m ending these four years with so many memories meeting people with connections that will last. Those questions I did say “yes” to were some of the best decisions and memories I’ve made. But there are still a lot of opportunities I could have taken to put myself out there and get the most out of what Prep has to offer. So many other things I could’ve said “yes” to.

1,460 days went by fast, but I’m glad I was able to learn a lot from them. Even if you think there’s nothing else you can find and that you’ve gotten everything you possibly could out of Prep, just keep searching. Say “yes” more often and I promise, you will not regret it. There’s always something more out there. At least, that was the case for me, and it will continue to be in this next chapter of my life. See you later, Prep, it’s been a good ride.