My story doesn’t start with me but rather with two people in Zacatecas, Mexico. My parents were married at the young age of 18 and, later on, had their first child. When my sister was born, my parents decided to move to the United States, dreaming of providing their daughter with a better future. Settling in wasn’t easy, yet they still prevailed, the family growing bigger. Now, my family consists of my mother, father, two older sisters, and a younger brother, myself included. I am the last of my family to attend Sacred Heart High School, closing our story with Sacred Heart. The first time I walked the hallways, my first memory of Sacred Heart was not as a student but as a little girl, coming with my family to my eldest sister’s open house. I remember walking with my tiny little legs around an unfamiliar school, confused about why I was there. Back then, I had no clue how much this school would change my life.
Looking back at my whole experience here at Sacred, I realized how much I have grown and changed. I went from being this shy girl fresh out of 8th grade to now being a graduating student of the class of 2024, being excited about my next journey rather than looking at it with fear. This place has taught me things that I couldn’t find in textbooks. Sacred Heart has given me opportunities I would have never had in other schools and has allowed me to meet the kindest people in the world. Here, I realized what kind of person I am and discovered my passions with the help of many lovely friends and mentors. That little girl didn’t even know where the classrooms were, yet here I am as a senior, going to miss those classrooms where I learned and grew.
It feels like yesterday when I first stepped into this school as a little girl, clueless about the legacy I would be a part of and how short these next few years of my life would be. Because of Sacred Heart, I am now ready for whatever life throws my way. Will I have multiple breakdowns? Yes, who hasn’t been there. Will I experience FOMO? Oh absolutely. Will I miss seeing the same old faces every day? Of course I will. There is nothing I can’t handle, though, because I have people who will help me, and I have a resilient mind that will allow me to move forward.
Although I am saddened by the fact that I will be the last one in my family to bear the name “Comet,” I will gladly wear that title with pride wherever I go, and I pray that students of Sacred Heart High School will have nothing but good luck in their future.