I never believed it. I never believed it when people would tell me that time flies, to cherish certain moments, and to give everything you’ve got in any activity. I felt that I had an eternity; ever since 5th grade, I would always think to myself I have so much time, a whole 7 years; that is going to take forever. Before I knew it, it was already creeping towards the end of May and the end of my senior year. Since entering high school in 2018 of my freshman year, there have been so many ups and downs and moments where I was truly trying to find myself as an individual.

Throughout my time at Westborough High School, one of the biggest things that I found comfort in was always the basketball team. Since playing up but never really knowing many of the older kids on the team, I was extremely nervous my first year playing. I remember always being nervous, quiet, and scared when being around the older kids and having to share the court with them. However, one of the biggest lessons I learned was that when I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried to be comfortable with being uncomfortable, things started to change for me. The biggest people that helped me showcase who I truly was as a person and helped create memories for a lifetime were always on the basketball team with me. I want to shout out Ethan Steinberg, Sammy Delgado, Soham, and Ryan Silverberg for taking me in as a freshman and making me feel as if I were one of them. Shout out to the Bench Boyz.  

Sophomore year was one of the toughest years I had in terms of school and basketball. Being the only sophomore on varsity and really not getting a whole lot of minutes throughout the year really took a toll on me. I remember walking out of that season ready to quit basketball. Despite having some of the most fun ever with my teammates on the bench, I was fully ready to just walk away.

Throughout my junior year, I enjoyed school, basketball, and hanging out with my friends so much. I realized that everyone needs to cherish the times with their friends as they don’t last forever. Go do those outlandish things and have fun. The biggest piece of advice I would give to anyone in any grade is to try and become friends with everybody. Don’t section yourself off or think you’re too “cool” for anyone. If you’re not close with some people, become close and be the friend everyone loves. 

Going into my senior year I was excited for everything to come; I was excited to commit to college, play my senior year of basketball, and have fun while doing it all. Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse when I tore my ACL during the season opener of my senior year. Everything that was going for me, the college phone calls, the hype, and the opportunities that were soon to come had all slipped right through my fingers and vanished. This was definitely the toughest time of my life as I had lost my purpose and a big part of who I was. For a long time I had no clue what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go for college, it took me all the way up to April 30th to finally decide what I wanted to do. Throughout this entire time I tried to take this loss as a learning opportunity, I tried my best to come out with the thoughts that everything happens for a reason, things will always turn out for the better, and to always keep your head up. Trying to stay as positive as possible helped me get through this tough time as much as possible. My family was a massive help as well so I will always be thankful for them as well. One of the biggest things I learned was to never let a situation define who you are and to always show everyone that you’re strong even when at times you aren’t. 

I would like to shout out Trillest and Gatorade 2 Pack, those kids probably got me in the most trouble I could ever imagine. Shout out to the NH trip and the movie theater saga heading into junior year. Shout out to MV. Thank you all for making my high school experience one to remember forever. Good luck everyone!