Reflections: Writing and Graduation

By Lily Bozenski

I’ll be graduating soon, which means this is the final article I will write for The Talon. It’s bittersweet; I’m excited to see where life takes me from here, but saying goodbye is never something I look forward to. With this in mind, I’m going to spend this article reflecting on my life in high school, the writing journey I’ve been on these past four years, and my time in The Talon up to this point. Maybe I’ll even give some encouragement along the way. 

Freshman year was just as stressful as anyone would imagine. I got lost at least three times trying to find my classes and I had no clue how to make friends. I’d just come out of the purgatory that is middle school and I was still trying to recover from the burns I’d been left with. Needing to manage a whole new school on top of that felt impossible. Despite that, I continued to trudge through the muck. That year taught me just how much stronger I am than I thought, and how important it is to continue holding onto hope even when you don’t think it’s possible to succeed. 

In Sophomore year, I joined The Talon and fully poured myself into my writing. I’d discovered poetry the year before and knew by then that I wanted to write for the rest of my life. I wasn’t sure what The Talon would hold for me, but I knew I wanted to explore every kind of writing I could, so I picked up writing articles and publishing as many as possible before the burn out of Sophomore year caught up to me. I crashed hard under the weight of all the work, but somehow still managed to struggle my way through assignments. I met new friends to confide in and grew to points I didn’t expect. I discovered just how much writing can help me with my emotions, and I found a healthy outlet for everything I was feeling. 

By Junior year, I had dedicated myself to my writing. I’d tried as many genres of writing as I knew of and I was certain it’s how I wanted to grow my career. I continued to write for The Talon, improving my writing with every article I churned out and inspiring myself to write even more. I began working on full length stories and poetry books as well as reveling in each new essay assignment. My friend group morphed and changed until eventually I discovered the people who I knew understood me. I felt like I could finally write both for myself and for others, finding the joy in something I love and the joy in sharing it. 

Senior year started out terrifying. I wasn’t sure how to apply to colleges or what to do once I got in. I was suddenly being faced with life changing decisions and I felt stuck. But once again, I kept pushing forward; a part of that push has always been writing. Soon, I got into my top school. I’ll be studying English at Bates College, and I’ll get to really dive deep into writing and analyzing to the point I can become a full-fledged author. It’s fulfilling and also a bit scary to see my dreams growing so close. No matter how great the fear becomes, I will continue to persevere through it, because each year in this school and in The Talon has taught me that no matter how hard or scary the world feels, continuing to fight through it will pull every difficult goal into a reality. Keep fighting through that fear and the hardship; all the good waiting for you on the other side is cheering you on.