Football, my favorite part of high school. Hitting someone as hard as you possibly can and getting hit just as hard (well almost as hard) by someone else the next play is an unbelievable feeling. You may think I was crazy for playing because I was 5’4″ and weighed 140 pounds, and, by the next morning I felt as if I was in a car wreck. However, it was definitely worth it.

I only played football my senior year though, so there has to be other aspects about FC that kept me here for 13 years. What this school has ultimately done for me is shaped me into who I am today and exposed me to new things, like football.

My parents chose FC for me as an elementary school and gave me the option to leave in high school but I could never get myself to make that decision. There was something about the small atmosphere of the school and the relationships I had built with my teachers and fellow students that wouldn’t let me tear away.

Now, if I had gone to a school such as Clovis West I would have been able to take more diverse classes, play on better sports teams and it could have been very beneficial for me. At times I have regretted not making that decision, but as I look back, I’m glad I stayed.

Even though there aren’t an eclectic set of classes here, I’ve been able to have amazing teachers, which has completely made up for that. Because of Michael Fenton, my math teacher from Algebra II to Calculus, I have discovered my passion and ability in Math. Almost every kid in school says they hate Math, but I don’t, and I’ve chosen to be an Electrical Engineer, where I’ll have a plethora of math classes.

You might say I would have discovered this at any other school, but Fenton offered more to the class. He was fun, provided extra help and explained concepts in numerous ways to make it so everyone could learn.

Fenton was not the only great teacher I had as English and journalism adviser Greg Stobbe had a major impact on me also. In his freshman honors English class, I was stretched in how to write and express myself in ways I didn’t even know were possible. I mean, write a paper without using one helping verb, that seemed impossible, but he made it possible.

At the end of freshman year I thought he would forget about me and move on, but as sophomore year started I was immediately targeted for his journalism class. I joined, not really knowing what I was getting into, and he stretched me more once again. Frankly, I wanted to drop his class several times, but I didn’t and I was able to learn things from interviewing to different styles of writing.

These are some of the academic aspects that were important to me, but the most important part that I will remember the most was and is my friends. You can be involved in every activity possible at school, but if you don’t have a core group of close friends you’re missing something key.

I found this set of individuals and they have made high school enjoyable. The number of Friday nights where we have hung out and done stupid things I couldn’t even say, but that’s a major part of high school: building relationships.

I’ll be leaving these people and the rest of FC next September, stepping into the real world when I go to Cal Poly University in San Luis Obispo, which is by no means a Christian university.

I will have to come into contact with students and professors who look upon Christianity as some sort of religion for unintelligent children. That will definitely be difficult, but growing up in FC’s environment has prepared me for the challenges. So, I’m ready to face it head on and hit them as hard as I possibly can (in a good way).

Senior Sean Carter will attend Cal Poly University in San Luis Obispo in the fall, where he will major in Electrical Engineering.