This year was filled with a whirlwind of emotions and memories. I personally believe that this year was my year of growth and discovery. In sixth and seventh grade, I was blundering through school, not really knowing who I was or what my purpose was. While I still don’t know everything that I want to be and accomplish, I feel like I have a clearer idea and path after this year. Part of the reason for this is because of the wonderful yearbook class that I was in. At the beginning of the year, yearbook seemed very overwhelming and stressful compared to the year before. The biggest challenge for me was getting over the big shift between yearbook this year compared to last year. Coach Leyva really did push me and my fellow peers to do our absolute best, but only because she knew that we could. She could see the potential that we possessed, and she brought that out in us. This year I accomplished the task of using photoshop and producing something that I was proud of. Not many people know how to use photoshop, so at the time, it felt like a huge accomplishment. When I first started using photoshop, it was extremely difficult, but it has gotten easier with time. Looking back at it now, I can remember how happy and excited I was to show my completed photoshop project to my friends and family. Other than learning some cool photoshop tricks, there are some things that happened this year that I will never forget. One of those things is definitely the distribution party. Undoubtedly, it was a hectic event, with kids streaming through the cafeteria looking for their yearbooks. A few times, I was certain that I was going to get trampled. Despite how crazy the whole party was, it felt amazing handing my student body something that I had produced with my whole yearbook staff. We had worked on that book all year, and now it was in the hands of familiar faces, smiling and laughing at the pages. That feeling just made me want to achieve my goal of being an author even more.
Speaking of my wonderful yearbook staff, there were several people that made this class unforgettable. I will never forget Grace asking me for help on her photoshop project and then apologizing profusely, (even though I didn’t mind helping her out!) or Mackenzie showing me the ins and outs of the DSLR Camera and how to take amazing pictures. Quite honestly, Mackenzie was a big help throughout the whole entire year, and she never lost her patience with me. For that, I thank her immensely. Despite Mackenzie and Michele being my good friends in the class, I sat in the corner of the room next to Grace. This spot was my favorite part of the whole entire classroom. It might have been because of how quiet it was, or maybe it was the fact that the cold vents didn’t blow on me from where I sat! Whatever the reason, my computer was definitely my favorite place to be. Though this year was completely amazing and wonderful, there are some things that I would change. If I could go back, I would change my attitude at the beginning of the year. Like I already touched on in my previous paragraph, I thought that yearbook was going to be an easy 100. Boy, was I wrong. If I could go back and tell my past self one thing, I would tell myself to be diligent. This class is not just another elective. Thankfully, I learned that everyone else was struggling a little bit too. Grace sometimes needed help using different programs, and many people asked me for help on how to upload pictures into the computer. Because of all of these things that I did, I learned that teamwork, trust, and responsibility are important in your everyday life. Without those three qualities, it’s hard to make a yearbook, and it’s hard to mesh with your staff. Thankfully, I became fairly close with everyone, which is why everyone in yearbook feels like my family. When school started back in fall, I was lacking in my teamwork skills. Working with others was hard for me, even though I was in the yearbook staff in seventh grade. I seldom talked to the eighth graders in my class and I liked to keep to myself. Yearbook has taught me that it’s important to communicate with your team and discuss changes or things that need to be done. I would like to think that I’ve opened up to others more and value teamwork above all. My favorite part of a typical day in yearbook would be turning on my computer and looking at everything that needs to be done. When I do that, I can see what I need to prioritize and what I can put on the back burner.
And finally, Coach Leyva. Coach Leyva was an amazing yearbook teacher, but sometimes, the assignments she gave us seemed too difficult to tackle. Though I previously thought of it as a negative, I’m glad that she challenged us. Everyone in yearbook benefited because of it. If I had to describe this school year in six words, those words would be amazing, exhausting, productive, diligent, pleasant, and satisfying. All of the things I learned this year can and will be applied to my future life, no matter what I plan to do in the upcoming years. To all of the people joining yearbook next year, I would like to say this; Take this class seriously and learn all that you can. The year will fly by, so hold on to the memories and moments for as long as you can.
Maxine
