Goodbye, SHS
April 8, 2020
Dear Seymour High School,
So many things have happened throughout these four years. I’ve met so many people. I’ve made so many memories. Most importantly, I found myself. I never thought a pandemic would happen in my lifetime, yet here I am in the middle of it. I recently got a job at the Lutheran Community Home so I am considered an essential worker. Every day I go to work for eight hours, or on the few days I’m off I’m working on homework or sleeping. It hasn’t truly hit me that I won’t get to have a real graduation, or that I will never walk the halls as a student again. I had to say goodbye before I was ready. Since this is the last article I will be publishing for The Owl, I’m going to share with you my high school experience from beginning to end.
Freshman year was a bad year for me. I did not know where I belonged. I moved to a new group every few months. I wanted to fit in and make friends so bad I never focused on my school work. I made decent grades, just not the grades I knew I could have made if I put the effort in. My mom and I never got along. All day we were arguing via text messages. It was a rough time for me. Eventually, I made it out alive.
Sophomore year was a little better. Everything was still bad until halfway through the school year. I eventually did what I wanted to do so I could be happy. It was hard, but I stopped talking to the toxic people in my life. I started pouring my soul into writing hoping to find myself somewhere in the words. While picking through the words, I found parts of me I never knew existed. I learned how strong I am. That I can walk away from a damaging experience and be stronger than I was before, It’s good to know that I’ll be strong no matter what comes my way.
Junior year was a great year for me. I found the group where I belonged. I made so many friends and so many memories. Late-night drives with the windows rolled down screaming our favorite songs. Those are the memories that will stick with me forever. I had my first and only prom. I went with my friends and had the best time. Between watching Chloe be nominated for Prom Queen and dancing with my favorite people, it was a night I will never forget. Junior year was probably my favorite year out of the four.
Senior year, a great year that was cut too short. I came into the school year knowing who I am. I knew who my friends were. I got accepted into the only college I considered Indiana State University. I’m going to major in nursing and minor in psychology. I have been terrified for months I would hate being a nurse, but since becoming a healthcare worker, I realize this is what I am meant to do. I naturally have the skills that a nurse needs from what I have experienced. Now, I’m sitting here typing this in tears because I will never get to have the normal goodbye a senior gets. I understand why I don’t get a normal goodbye, but it still hurts.
Seymour High School, thank you for everything. These past four years have made me the person I am today. Without you, who knows what kind of a person I would be. To the class of 2020, I love you all. Thank you for being my peers for the past four years. To my friends, thank you for being there for me when I needed you. To my family, thank you for supporting me. To myself, thank you for not giving up. You’re a sunflower. Don’t ever let the sun escape you.
Love forever and always,
Phoebe Hughel

This year I am a senior at Seymour High School. I have been in newspaper for three years and this will be my last year. I plan to go to college for nursing...
Thank you for three years of dedication to The Owl. Keep discovering how beautiful the reat of us know you are. Time to Soar, Phoebe!