~Hector Cruz, Class of 2024

The Possibilities are Endless 

The possibilities are numerous once we decide to act and not react.

~George Bernard Shaw

Every successful person you know has one thing in common. They all did something. They all made the decision at some point in their lives to go for it and actually get to work instead of sitting on their butts and waiting for something good to happen to them. That is something that was always in the back of my head but I never really recognized the importance of taking initiative until my ninth grade trip to Windsor Mountain.

It was the end of the day and the light was running out. All the camp counselors and all the students headed to the campfire. Once we all got there, we all crowded around the campfire and sat on the ground. However, if you were going to sing or perform something to the group, you were able to sit on one of the two benches. We eventually ended up on our backs so we could look up at the night sky. 

As we sat there we looked up to the stars, and as the sun set and its light slowly withdrew from the sky, we could gradually see the shining white light of the stars contrasting brightly against the dark blackness of the night sky. I could feel the blades of grass delicately poking my back. And despite the water on the ground from the light showers earlier in the day seeping into my clothes

 I didn’t mind because the gentle acoustic music and the warm smoky smell of the burning logs were doing their best to turn off my tired mind and force me to be calm and at peace. I lay there on my back looking up at the stars for what felt like too much and too little time all at once. That one moment was the most calm and relaxed I have ever felt in my life. I could have laid there forever. My mind was perfectly at ease. I was neither thinking about what I could’ve done better in the past nor worrying about what the future might hold for me. Looking up at those stars and feeling perfectly at peace, I understood what Sunny Qian was trying to say in his senior reflection last year. 

We don’t matter. In the vast greatness of the endless universe, we are worth less than a speck of dust blowing in the wind. 

And yet, it doesn’t feel like that. Everything in our lives feels so big and important despite every single one of us knowing it’s all pointless. It seems depressing at first, but for me, it’s comforting. Every time I feel stressed out or overwhelmed or feel like I can’t do something just because it’s not perfect, I remind myself that it doesn’t matter to the terrifyingly beautiful infinite mixture of darkness and light that is our universe. It helps me take a step back, clear my head from all the pressure I was unwittingly placing on myself and get back to work.

After the campfire we had the option to join Fitz as he walked down to the waterfront to look at the water. Most, if not all of our grade joined him on his walk. That path to the water was a short but steep walk down a gravel trail. As our class all grouped together and retreated from the warm glow of the fire pit as we walked down the path, I felt a sense of camaraderie and brotherhood with my friends when we put our arms around each other’s shoulders and stumbled down that dark path simply because we were doing it together. Just as with the campfire, I felt abnormally calm and relaxed, however, I didn’t feel completely the same. I also felt a little excited to be going on this little ‘adventure’ down to the waterfront and a little sad to know that it was going to end so soon. I did, however, enjoy it greatly as it allowed me to share a beautiful experience with my friends and allowed me to really understand them clearer.

This next memory is not that extraordinary, but it was still a memorable experience that I really enjoyed. The second day at Windsor Mountain, my activity group got to go down to the waterfront. It started raining just as we were about to swim.I quickly jumped in the water and was surprised to find that it was warmer than the rain that was falling. The rain was cold and the water below about four feet was also cold but since everyone was moving around and exercising, the mixture of the warm water and the cold wet rain combined to make it not warm, but not cold. We were heating up at the same speed that we were being cooled down by the slick water on our bodies. 

While in the moment, it was really all about having fun and messing around in the water with my friends, looking back, I find that moment a nice way to represent the balance and beauty of nature—a way for us to unintentionally create an example of homeostasis outside the one that occurs in our bodies every day. 

We may not be important to the world.

It doesn’t mean we can’t change it.