Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

For me, reading and writing have always been a comfort. I write a lot: papers for school classes, of course, and a decent amount of homework assignments, but also journal entries, loud opinions and quiet musings, short jots in bullet journals, lots of outlines in iPhone notes, and my treasured blog posts.

I love to read, too, any story that pries my head open and dives in headfirst, splashing ideas around and allowing me to submerge myself in a new world for a moment and discover something new and exciting.

And so, I am back again, in the middle of a school quarter, busy and drowning in assignments but too deep  in ideas to keep waiting. I am here, and I want to write and share.

So hi there, everyone! It's Claire, and I'm so glad to see you again. 

I returned to book Twitter maybe two weeks ago and all of the messages reminded me of when I first fell in love with the book blogging community, a group of excited bookworms discussing and experimenting and learning and creating.

I leave the past month with a notebook full of post ideas, thoughts on recent reads, and personal insight. It is overflowing; I am bursting with words.

Before I jump in, though, I thought I would clairefy where I've been during this time and where I'm headed. 

Where I've Been

Since my last update post from break, school has reclaimed most of my time. At the end of summer, though, I had the opportunity to visit Brown University and Dartmouth College as I search for what college I may attend next fall (and hope to be admitted!).

Walking through the vibrant towns that surrounded campuses and talking with eager college students about their learning makes me excited for the future, to be an environment where I am delving into the things I love with other passionate students.

I also started cross country preseason, which almost tripled my summer mileage in the first week. By day two, we had run over twelve miles already, around my mileage for one week in the summer.

In August, I started my senior year of high school. Academically, this year is the hardest for me so far. I am currently taking physics and French along with AP European history, AP literature and composition, AP chemistry, chorus, and a calculus class from my local community college. You can bet that I've returned to my favorite study spot: the whiteboard.

where I am going

I have had a lot of homework lately, and my grades are proving stressful to maintain for college applications. Outside of my worries, though, I do feel that I am learning a lot in different areas this year, and I have occasionally surprised myself. I have always felt much stronger in the humanities, but science has interested me. Although chemistry is not one of my strong subjects and I often struggle in lab, I remain for the satisfaction when, after grappling with a problem for what feels like ages, solution dawns and you want to scream and jump up and down in triumph.

Still, I love too many projects to picture myself in one field or major. Wherever I go for college, I hope I will be able to continue exploring my multiple interests.

My senior cross country season thus far has been bittersweet. At practices, I generally felt very tired and sometimes light-headed, took longer to recover my breath, and I ran much slower than in previous years, but I assumed stress with school accounted for these differences.  About two weeks ago, however, I was diagnosed with anemia. Hopefully, when treated, I will be able to exercise and run without feeling so tired or dizzy. I am glad I now know about the issue, but I am nervous that even later my running will not return to where I'd like it to be. Still, I am glad that I am able to finish the season with the team I started this race of high school with.

I am most excited about my extracurricular activities. I hosted the school's first Model UN meeting of the year and I am eager to challenge the club to try new activities, attend more conferences, and learn more about the world (more on this later :)). I will also soon prepare for my first public forum debate competition with my debate partner and best friend. 

Aside, I am also excited for opportunities in music. I have played the piano for almost twelve years now, but I have not had a teacher or regular practice since I started high school. One of my friends is composing the music for our school's fall play, though, and I will be accompanying the production on piano! 

In chorus, I recently auditioned and made our school's select group, the Wildcat Singers. I am looking forward to singing with the group, something I've thought about since my first year of high school, in my senior year.

And finally, I am so happy to return to blogging, one of my favorite passion projects!

Looking forward, I have a lot ahead of me. I am stressed, sometimes, but I am going to try my best to savor my last moments of high school. They are fleeting, and I know soon, change is coming. For everything, I have to be ready, and I will be. For now, I want to enjoy.

how has your September been so far?