Dear Naperville North,

I never thought that it would be over so soon. I never thought that my last day of high school would be spent on my computer, at home. I always imagined the picture-perfect ending to the roller coaster that has been high school. I imagined walking past my friends that I have grown up with and the people that have shaped me with a sense of pride and accomplishment that would come at the perfect time and conclude the perfect ending. 

Instead, here we are. The class of 2020’s perfect ending is no longer an option. We never get that final goodbye, and we don’t get to be sent off by the people and the places that have prepared us for what lies ahead. 

So, this is my best shot at saying goodbye. Though not what I pictured, a goodbye nonetheless.

I came to Naperville North with only half of my friends by my side, feeling like Naperville Central was a million miles away and feeling like everyone had settled into their friend groups beside me. I quickly formed friendships with people who I’ve barely talked to since. I switched lunch tables three times during the first semester of my freshman year. I barely remember freshman year, because I’ve coincidentally blocked out all of the times that I felt childish and completely unlike myself. 

That being said, I wouldn’t trade my stupid 14-year-old self for anything, because she would be so incredibly proud of what she grew into. Slowly but surely, I found my friends. I lost some along the way, and gained some that I know will be in my life forever. 

I learned to be competitive, for better or for worse. I learned that I could push myself far beyond what I thought I was capable of. I learned to push myself, my gpa, my test scores, and everything that would get me to where I wanted to go in the future.

When everyone told me that these four years would go by in the blink of an eye, I didn’t picture it becoming three and a half years. None of us ever left the building that friday afternoon expecting to never come back again for one last period, one last bell, or one last goodbye. As much as I kind of hated that building, it was also my second home for the past four years, complete with family and friends.

So thank you to that building, thank you to the people that made it what it was, and thank you to the people who made me who I am. I truly would not trade it for the world.

It’s sappy, cheesy, and everything in between, but my imperfect ending is just a reflection of my perfectly imperfect four years at North.

¡Hasta la vista!

Kyra

His Legacy

I’ll admit it- I’m not the biggest basketball fan. I can spit off facts about hockey or football, but when it comes to basketball, my knowledge is lacking.

One thing that I do know, however, is that Kobe Bryant leaves a legacy that is hard to surpass. Between five championships, three MVP titles, and four scoring championship titles, the list is extensive and undeniably impressive. On and off the court, Kobe Bryant inspired many through his work ethic and tenacity that coupled with his talent to give us one of the best basketball players of all time.

More than just a loss for the basketball community, however, Kobe Bryant’s death was a shock to the world and rippled through a community of parents, sons and daughters, and friends. 

With my boyfriend losing a parent in August, I was especially sensitive to the news. As I scrolled through Kobe’s Instagram, filled with videos and pictures of his daughters, it was hard to not imagine them, and how life had stopped for them in a time when it went on for everyone around them. 

The death of the nine people on board the helicopter that day proved to me the abruptness of life and its unpredictability. 

Kobe’s death is about more than just basketball because it proves to us that death surpasses those more material things and brings people together in grief and in remembrance.

It’s about more than just basketball because it shows the lives that he touched in being the epitome of a loving, caring, and proud father and husband. 

I’m fully aware that his past was controversial. I’m not here to glorify his actions that may have hurt others or to erase the mistakes that he may have made. 

Regardless of his past, however, at the time of his death, Kobe had raised four beautiful daughters. Through this, he was successful in every aspect of the word, and leaves a legacy that goes beyond the court. 

Coping

For many of us, his sudden death may have triggered a reminder of a past trauma or a loss of a loved one. With or without warning, trauma and loss is something that greatly affects us all, and Kobe’s death is certainly not the only one to have touched our lives.

One of the strongest women I know, my boyfriend’s mother has held her family together in a time of loss of a husband and a father.

In the midst of a bad day, or a mental breakdown, she doesn’t miss a beat before recounting stories of her late husband. She never fails to remind herself of how lucky she was to share those memories with him, and continues to be an amazing mother to her children.

Her methods of coping have taught me what grief looks like, and that it doesn’t always have to be ugly. 

I’ve come to realize that coping doesn’t always have to be about missing the person, but carrying on the legacy that they have left and continuing to remind ourselves of what they did with their time here, even if it was much too short.

The loss of Kobe and Gianna Bryant reminds us just how lucky we are to be able to pull our loved ones close. It reminds us that 13 years old is not too young to leave a legacy that will be remembered far after they are gone. 

It reminds us that coping with the loss of a loved one, of a friend, and of a hero is part of the human experience, and it comes with all of the good, bad, and ugly of life.