As I look back at the past four years of high school, many memories come to mind. Most of what I have endured has taught me lifelong lessons on friendships. Through the past four years, I have made friends in many different scenarios, but the most memorable were the friendships I made while on my trip to Belize.
The trip was scheduled for June 2024 and was 8 days long. This would be my first time leaving the country, and I would be without my family. But I didn’t think there would be any problem with me finding my people because I am an outgoing person. I had one person before the trip, and hung out with her on the bus ride to the airport. Once we got to the airport, I noticed that half of the group was a year older than me, and a lot of them already seemed to have their own friend group. It made me feel like I wouldn’t fit in with them. When landing in Belize, the humidity mixed with sandy winds was a new experience.
The first day is a blur. All we did was check into the hotel, go to a restaurant, and go to sleep. But the second day was full of adventure. We went to a river where we spent time finding different types of turtles, which, to most of the group, was very exciting, but I felt very alone. Everyone had their own group, and I didn’t. After, we went to eat, and a group of three girls sat down with me, who were incoming seniors. They began to ask me about school and if I had any questions about junior year. They gave me tricks on how to manage homework and AP classwork. They seemed very genuine, and I felt comfortable talking to them.
Throughout the rest of the trip, I stayed with them. They introduced me to the boys that they were friends with, and we all became one big friend group. After the trip, we had made plans to hang out for one of the girls’ birthdays. We went to the beach, and I got introduced to more people in their grade. For the rest of their high school career, we spent a lot of time together. They would teach me how to prepare for tests and help with assignments. They were like the older sisters I’ve always dreamed of. Once they left, we promised to always stay in touch. Even now, we still constantly talk.
Now that I am graduating high school, I am going to miss my underclassmen friends. I understand that calling and texting isn’t the same as going to school with someone, seeing them daily. I hope that I have helped by guiding them with advice on how to manage their senior year, as my older friends did with me. I will always be thankful that I had older friends who led me through high school and taught me how to lead my younger friends to do the same.
