When I first walked into the halls of Plano Senior in August, I tried to keep my expectations to a minimum. For most, starting fresh at a new school for senior year is the last thing they would volunteer to do. But after four years of online school, I knew I needed a change. On the first day of school, I walked into room B208, both excited to be a part of a collaborative publication and entirely unaware of what to expect. What I didn’t know that day, as I sat down in a random chair at the rectangular table to the then intimidating greetings of Nina and Penelope, is that this room would be the setting in which I would get to know some of my best friends. 

     While it took us a month or two to fully warm up, the nine of us eventually became quite the group. Over the past nine months, The Wildcat Tales has become my little home within Plano, and everybody who is a part of it has become family. For fifty minutes each weekday morning, we have grown together both as writers and people, and made memories that I will hold closely as I enter the next chapter of my life. Despite the fact that B208 is where I was first told I look like a “Baylor girl” (sic ‘em), it was also where we assigned each other to statistics graphs, planned outings to Six Flags, Waffle House, and eventually prom, and grew into the little group commonly referred to as the “newspaper squad”. 

     To Nina, Penelope, Alexis, and Carson, thank you for representing what it means to have a group of friends that always have each other’s backs. I will miss you all as we head to five different states next year, but I know a little distance won’t keep us apart. To Anna Sofia, Stasia and Chloe (honorable mention for Abdiel), thank you for being the best juniors and never failing to give me a reason to bring extra snacks in my backpack. I know we are leaving The Wildcat Tales in good hands and wish you all the best as you enter your senior year. To Ms. James, thank you for providing a place for us to be us and putting up with our many shenanigans during first period. Each of you drive me insane every day but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I will miss you all dearly and will cherish the memories we’ve created together at our little rectangular table. 

      As I prepare to leave for college in the fall, I hope to bring with me the lessons I have learned both throughout high school and as a part of The Wildcat Tales and apply them to my endeavors as a journalism major at the University of Texas. But regardless of where I end up in the future, I know that I will always have the comfort of my hometown and all of the people who make it my home to fall back on. Go wildcats and hook ‘em horns!