by Xander Mui, Staff Writer
Although my high school years seemed to pass by in a blink of an eye, I was able to create lasting memories as I turned myself around in my junior year.
In my early years of high school, I was disconnected from my classmates due to social anxiety caused by the pandemic. Beginning with a shortened freshman year and a lost sophomore year, junior year was when high school really began for me. Freshman year started off very well as I was able to be active in school and maintain good grades. Unfortunately, it was all short lived when school shut down the spring semester. My social life and skills crumbled to the ground during the quarantine. I was too scared to express myself and I didn’t know how to connect with people.
When we came back to school during the fall of 2021, It felt like I was a new student at a completely new school. The environment was completely different from what I was used to last year. Adjusting to this seemingly new environment was difficult for me. The friends that I’ve made in freshman year seemed to disappear and I was too nervous to make new ones. I thought too much about what other people would think of me, so I closed up.
However, during the spring semester of junior year, I decided to join the swim team, since it was a sport that I enjoyed. I actually didn’t even realize we had a swim team. The only way I found out we had a team was because my friend, a former swimmer, told me about it a week before the season started. I was reluctant to join at first since I was nervous about meeting people, but It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
When I joined, the first thing I noticed was that our swim team had fallen apart greatly because of the pandemic. Last year, our team was small, with just a little over 10 swimmers.
Last year things also started out very disorganized. We needed to rely heavily on managers and the team captain to make sure things got done and people were where they needed to be. We also felt that practices were very inefficient; not a lot of swimming happened, so not a lot of people went to practices.
But it were these things that ultimately brought our team together. The management, the practices, and the small size of our team allowed us to get to know each other very well. Although our team felt completely unseen, we all supported each other like family, cheering each other on throughout the season. When people would cheer for me and open up to me I would try to reciprocate those actions. I was finally able to grow out of my shell and make friends.
Despite all the bumps along the road, we eventually made it to All City Finals. I was very happy with helping my team get 4th place in the JV boys division by getting second place medals in the 100 freestyle and 100 individual medley.
Even more surprising was how our JV girls team was able to win the 1st place title for the very first time in Galileo history. We were all proud of each other and proud that we exceeded expectations from others as well as our own.
When the season ended last year, it was bittersweet. I was happy that the season ended on a good note but I was sad to say goodbye to some of my friends. The time that I spent with my teammates helped me relearn how to open up and connect with other people. Now, moving on to college, I will remember and cherish the time I’ve spent and the memories I’ve created with the team.
