Throughout my years at Fresno Christian I have encountered several ups and downs, which have helped make me the person I am today. In seventh grade I transferred to this campus; I went from attending a large public school to a small Christian school.

The change may not seem that drastic, but it was very difficult making the move. I not only had to make new friends, but I had to start all over again. I joined volleyball right away and thankfully made the team. It was a great opportunity to meet new people and keep me busy after school.

As new friendships started to develop and most of my time was being dedicated to spending time with them, my old friendships began to deteriorate. I faced many struggles to reestablish my old friendships, but it was hard because we went to different schools, making it difficult to keep in touch.

Even when we would get the chance to hang out, it was not the way it used to be. We seemed to be going different ways in life, which was hard for me to accept.

As junior high came to an end, I had yet another change I was about to endure: high school. It was very intimidating to be a little freshman walking through hallways full of upperclassmen. It took a while for me to get used to the change. Once again I was involved in sports, which helped me to build bonds with the upperclassmen.

Now, being a senior in high school and knowing how it felt to be a young freshman, I have gone out of my way to make the freshmen feel more comfortable.

Whether it’s talking to them in art class or bonding with them on the cheer squad, I have learned that just the smallest effort can make a huge difference. I believe that everything happens for a reason; whether it is good or bad, we can still learn from every experience we encounter.