Everyone says to cherish your time in high school because it is over before you know it. As true as this may be, what you really need to cherish are all of the bonds and memories you make over the years while not necessarily during school hours. Don't get me wrong, high school is very important and it is something that needs to be taken seriously, but you also have to find that balance.

The balance needed is between school, sports, and being a kid, all at the same time because -- as much as you don't want to admit it -- you really are still a kid, and once high school is over, that is when adulthood really starts. The crazy group outfits you wear on Spirit Week, the 2 a.m. drives to Taco Bell with your best friends, the sound of your pre-game ritual down in the locker room -- these are the memories you take with you after high school has come to an end, these are the memories that last a life time.

At the time, it may seem as though that one bad grade, or that one mess up on a routine play, will stay in your mind for years, but in all reality it's not what you did during school that are the highlights -- it's the bonds and the memories you create with your friends and teammates off the court and outside of the classroom that stick with you. Soon enough, you will come to find out that some things are just not the same without the friends that you have grown up with since elementary school. They have stuck by your side for so many years, and you have created so many memories with them that doing the Saturday night bonfire and card nights just feels bizarre without them.

Cherish the time you have in high school, but don't dwell on the one bad grade, or the one dropped pass, because in 50 years that won't be what you tell your children and grandchildren about. You'll tell them about the friends you had, and all of the crazy stupid things you did together. So be grateful for the time you have, and make as many memories as possible because when you graduate -- and all of the fun you've had and all the memories you've created has to come to an end -- that is when you'll realize how great being in high school really is. But by that time, it's already to late.