Two years ago, I finished an incredible journey to the place that had become my home. I’m a firm believer that you get out what you put into something. I can promise you that if you put effort and hard work into East Leyden, you got endless opportunities and experiences out of it. For everyone who had the pleasure of attending this fine establishment, here is a list of 15 signs that you went to my amazing Alma Mater, East Leyden.

1. You know way too much about Chromebooks

When I was told we were getting one of these contraptions, I wanted nothing to do with it. I was a solid pen and paper kind of girl. As I got used to them, I started to appreciate them and how we got to use them for basically nothing. Yes, remembering to charge it was always a struggle, but they were extremely helpful and prepared you for having to use a laptop all the time in college. It also saved me from using my dinosaur of a computer at home.

2. If you took AP European History you will forever use that as a guideline to determine how hard a class is

I feel like this class was a turning point for me. It challenged me on every single level and helped me to grow into the student I am today. Whenever I’ve had a hard class after that, I always compare it to the stress levels of Euro. Usually, they don’t even compare. College biology is the only class that has come close to that since taking it my sophomore year of high school.

3. The Modern Language fair was something everyone looked forward to

I don’t know why, but I always ended up making salsa. I would also get focaccia and churros, and basically pig out right before I had lunch. It was probably not the best idea, but I loved it anyway.

4. Junior Olympic is by far the best part of the school year

Nothing united the school more than Junior Olympics. It brought everyone together, even if it was just for that hour in the gym. Whether you were participating in one of the wacky events or not, you couldn’t help but attend the festivities. The excitement of getting out of ninth and tenth period, the thrill of competition, and the pure joy that you knew as soon as it was over it was spring break was enough to bring most kids to tears.

5. On that note, winning Junior Olympics will be one of your best accomplishments

I wish I could have put this on my resume. It’s a shame no one outside of the Leyden community knows what it is. Winning senior year brought a new level of value to my high school experience. I could now graduate with no regrets.

6. You consider Stark to be God

Tony Stark? More like Tim Stark the Athletic PE teacher. This man is a legend, and anyone who ever had him will agree. He pushed his students, including myself, past their limits. If you were taking the class to get in shape or to maintain your shape, you left a better athlete, and person, because you had the pleasure of meeting this amazing coach, teacher, and man.

7. If you were in Athletic PE Pentathlon, it was your second-favorite time of the year

If you were in this class, competition is extremely important to you, so this was basically heaven for athletes. Getting the title of most fit boy or girl out of East and West is also something to put on applications for years to come.

8. The bus ride to West was the most annoying thing ever

The worst part about this shuttle was that it was mostly freshmen on it. When you’re a freshman this ride is great. You get to chat and have a great time. As soon as your freshman year is over, this bus becomes the worst thing to ever happen to you. You start to realize the headaches and nausea that come along with an overpacked, loud bus.

9. Every teacher is extremely overqualified

I swear that half of the people in that building could be college professors. Take advantage of them and every opportunity that you can.

10. Any teacher that taught a language was straight-up crazy

This includes both English and foreign languages. These people are some of the kindest and most intelligent people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. However, this doesn’t excuse the fact that sometimes you question their sanity. It leads to always having interesting classes, and I loved every second of it.

11. If you took the right classes, you definitely felt prepared for college

Honestly, college was harder than I thought it was going to be. However, that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t ready for it. Leyden gave me the base that I needed to be successful in college, and the rest of it is up to the student and the amount of work they’re willing to put in.

12. ACCESS was the best waste of time out there

I was a huge fan of the ACCESS program in general. I had a great advisor my freshman year who helped me throughout my four years of high school. I also was a mentor for two years, so I was well invested. Thinking back on it, some of the things you do are unnecessary and a waste of time. It’s something that all of us had to go through, though.

13. You couldn’t help but root for the bowling team

It is true that men’s soccer has been pretty successful in recent years, but throughout my years there it was always bowling. The team as a whole and then multiple individuals would consistently be in the state competition. I’ll never forget watching a video of a girl bowling a perfect game. How could you not cheer for that?

14. Having fourth-period lunch was the worst thing that could have happened to you

I considered this to be more of a late breakfast than an actual lunch. Seeing this on your schedule meant a semester of being hungry throughout the whole afternoon, and if you were an athlete you were just screwed.

15. East > West

We work together with West a lot, and if you were involved in extracurriculars some of your closest friends were probably from West. This was all good and dandy, but at the end of the day we all knew that East was superior. No one really ever had any solid evidence to support either side, but it’s definitely East.

My experiences at East Leyden have shaped me into the student and person that I am today. I will forever be in debt to the amazing staff of this high school and all of the opportunities that they have given me. I am where I am today because people within those walls believed in me and pushed me to be my absolute best. It’s funny because I miss my teachers more than I miss most of my graduating class. Words cannot describe the impact that they’ve made. Thank you to everyone in that building for being amazing educators.