2021 is a very special year for me because it is my last year taking Encounters in middle school and it was the first time I was doing everything through a computer screen. Last year in March when it was announced we would be delayed from going back to school for two weeks, I would've never thought I would be finishing my last year at WAMS strictly online. Although everything I did for school was online, which seemed like it was going to be simple, it wasn't. Since I first started Encounters in fifth grade, everything we did was in-person. I could interact with my friends and be able to get my hands on things to do projects. In sixth grade, I met new people and slowly became friends with them as well. I remember going on field trips, my favorite one being when I visited the Renaissance Festival for the first time. I had so much fun but sadly couldn't stay there for long, but it was okay because in seventh I was able to go back and miss a whole school day. Overall, the change from in-person to strictly online was a hard change, but I knew it was something I had to get used to.

The eighth-grade year started with logging onto classes, but this time it was different. Unlike when we switched online in seventh grade, I was nervous. I had a whole new set of classes with a bunch of teachers I didn't know, so I was worried because I didn't know how they would be. Fortunately, there was one teacher I was glad I knew and knew how they would teach. That teacher was my Encounters teacher, Mr. Skipper. I was glad I had two classes with him, which were Encounters and English, which started and ended my B days. Encounters was sort of the same this year. I knew there were not gonna be a lot of creative projects like the Art Car from last year since most students were at home, but somehow it was still the same. We did assignments on ThinkCerca like always and started our research for the end of the year project. Occasionally we would do fun projects like Valentine's Day Card, which was my favorite as I got to use my love for anything aesthetically pleasing to design this card for my sister. Furthermore, I was able to use inspiration from things I enjoyed, and it made me really happy. Preparing for the research paper was fun, as it had to do with endangered animals, and I got to learn about new things and gain interest in something new. Slowly, things were looking good. The teachers gave us time to work on what we had to, and I played music or listened to true crime cases while I worked. There was no longer that anxiousness I had while being in a classroom, I could wake up later than usual, eat breakfast when I wanted to, and have my own desk with enough space to fit all my things. I was really grateful that this year things were going to change because I needed my routine to change and I wanted to take things at my own pace. In a way, I was grateful that my mom didn't send me back to school when we were allowed to and that she was so protective over her children and their wellbeing.

Starting my last year of middle school without seeing my friends and teachers was tough, but I like to think I managed to pull through. In fact, knowing this was going to be my last year at WAMS was enough to make me feel relieved, as I knew that summer break was upon me and I would become a freshman in high school. These past three years of hard work have gotten me to where I am now, and I've never felt proud of myself until now. Those nights which I spent feeling frustrated and crying because I couldn't get something finished are all done now, and as of right now, I can finally finish middle school in peace.