Wow! Finally senior year, the year you officially leave your childhood life behind. To be honest, I did not think those four years of high school could flash before my eyes so quickly.

As I have grown into a much more mature mindset, I can say that I see myself as a punching bag. I take as many hits people throw at me and still swing back. Now some may say that being a human punching bag is negative. For me, I see it as a positive way to grow, making me into a more strong-hearted person. Through it all I taught myself not to be broken down, no matter how hard the impact. Thing such as high school and coming from a traditional Palestinian family molded me that way. 

Freshman year Yasmine would be shocked with senior year Yasmine. During freshman year, I fully committed my time for homework and studying; I never gave myself a break. I wanted to be the best and do my best. Those A’s that I see printed on my progress reports and on Aeries kept me going. But as I grew I learned it’s not all about just the letter A to label who I am as a person. 

Sophomore year I took my first AP class. This was my very first B in years. In my sophomore year mind I believed that my world was going to end just based on a letter. I remember crying about receiving that grade believing it reflected who I am. 

Junior year is the year I changed my point of view on school and the person I am trying to become. I learned that yes, grades do matter too but getting a B or even C doesn’t make you any less of a hardworking student/person. 

Now as a senior in high school, I have really had some tough decisions to make on my own going into being an adult. Having to choose from colleges from a list of my top three choices ,going from UC Berkeley, Fresno state, and Fresno Pacific, was a difficult decision in my life that I still can’t believe I made. 

College has always been something I’ve dreamed of going to. As a kid my dream college was UCLA, however going to visit the college junior year I came up with the conclusion that UCLA isn’t for me. If my younger self had been told this she would probably be in shock. 

When it was finally down to picking the college of my choice, I spent over three days doing research on which school best fit me, not only that but I even visited the college campuses. This was a huge deal to me, to be honest I am scared of growing up. I don’t like the idea of my age getting older and older every year. Making this college decision was an event that really had me thinking like, “Woah I really am finished with my childhood.” 

Finally, choosing on April 30th, I chose the college that was a great fit for me, Fresno State. I will be pursuing my major of nutrition and diet in hopes to later become a dermatologist.