Life is hard. Life is stressful. The weeks are long but the years are short. With this in mind, it is important to cherish the small moments that we will later wish for.
As Ferris Bueller said in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
So with that being said, I asked ten tenth graders what is something throughout the day that makes them happy and their day a little bit better.
1. “Softball because it’s fun and there is a lot of energy and the mood is good. We’re really like a team and the coaches give [us] positive energy,” Martha Linker ’27 said.
2. “My cat. I’ve known Luna since she was born, so she has been through a lot with me. [We] connect very well, so every time I see her, she brings me tons of joy,” Elisha Evans ’27 said.
3. “Basketball because it’s my favorite hobby and that’s how I like spending my free time. I love playing basketball and I like playing with friends. Baylor basketball is my favorite and the Dallas Mavs, but it’s tough because of the trade,” Reed Haven ’27 said.
4. “‘SIX.’ Being able to dance because I didn’t do winter cheer, so towards the last two or three weeks all we were doing was dancing and I loved it so much. I did cheer for the fall but not for the winter and I missed that so much. I loved doing ‘SIX’ but I’m sad it’s over,” Andie McGurren ’27 said.
5. “What makes me happy is a matcha latte, a coffee, and my best friends. When I get coffee in the morning and I go out with my friends, it just brings me so much joy and is very fulfilling,” Londyn Bektic ’27 said.
6. “Training because [I like] driving the golf carts and being able to watch the sports,” Valorie Rojo ’27 said.
7. “When somebody holds the door for me. It makes me feel appreciated,” Shayla Smith ’27 said.
8. “Getting to sit with my friends at the lunch table and getting to hear about all of their days whenever we all have different classes,” Ally Dykes ’27 said.
9. “One thing that makes me happy throughout my school day is when we go to our computer science class. We play mini basketball and that really brightens my day. We have a little league going and we get to run two versus twos and it’s just really exciting. We get the last ten minutes of class to do that,” Parker Pullin ’27 said.
10. “Probably seeing my friends during the day. I can have a bad class or a bad day and I see someone I know, and then my mood is changed and it’s good for the rest of the day,” Talu Taflan ’27 said.
I hope this inspires you to take a moment during the day to be grateful for the things you have. Make sure to let people know that you are grateful for them and appreciate what they do for you. When life gets stressful and chaotic, don’t forget to look on the bright side and don’t take life too seriously. Remember that it’s only high school.
