Freshman year, I applied for a transfer to Prospect and was rejected; in hindsight, it was a blessing in disguise.
Most people who know me know one important thing about me: my closest friends all go to Prospect. In fact, my entire friend group goes to Prospect–except for me. Although they may go to Westmont’s rival school, I could never see them as my enemies. If anything, I have actually become closer to them this past year (shoutout to Camille Basa, Katia Sandoz, Grisell Salinas, and Jaeya Raras). I love that I have grown even closer to them despite us never being physically close. As much as I love the growth in my friendships with them, I sometimes feel slightly sad when I think about how life would be even better if I were able to go to the same school as them.
That thought was one of my driving factors for wanting to transfer. In December of 2021, I somehow convinced my mom and dad that I would be so much happier at Prospect, and they agreed to fill out a transfer application. After waiting only a few months, we received a letter back. My mom handed me the letter one day after school. I stared at it for a few minutes. After realizing that I needed to open it, I quietly walked to my room and shut the door. Sitting down in my chair at my desk, I stared at it a little longer, hesitating to open it. Eventually, with courage, I carefully opened the letter. I scanned it to find any promising words. There were none. Hot tears filled my eyes immediately. My head started spinning. It felt like my one way ticket to happiness was gone. I immediately called my best friend, Camille, and asked her to meet me at Moreland Middle School since, at the time, she lived across the street from it. She knew I had unfortunate news. I walked silently over to the school to meet her. Without saying a word, she already knew exactly what was wrong and gave me a hug.
I will always remember that day because I think about it often–especially this year. It appears in my head even more because I find myself thinking about how differently my life would have been if my transfer had been accepted. After so much thought over this issue, I realized that I will never truly be able to find a definitive answer; however, I do confidently know that I am grateful that I was rejected (a statement my 15-year-old self would have fainted after upon hearing).
I am grateful that I was rejected because I have realized that if I had been accepted into Prospect, I would have never had the same opportunities that Westmont has provided me with. At Westmont, I was able to find a new passion: field hockey. Anytime I am asked about field hockey, I truly cannot help but smile a little. I love field hockey because of the beautiful and welcoming community Westmont has. I know that if I had transferred to Prospect, my field hockey experience would not have compared at all. I am beyond thankful for all of the amazing people I have met in the Westmont field hockey program and will forever cherish every memory made, whether good or bad. Having the opportunity to serve as a captain my senior year is one of my proudest accomplishments–not because I like being in control, but because I am genuinely overjoyed knowing that my fellow teammates and coaches viewed me as someone who could represent and lead the spirit of our team.
Additionally, outside of athletics, I am incredibly grateful for all of the academic opportunities Westmont has bestowed upon me–for instance, all of my English classes and wonderful English teachers. Without Andy Evans, Bryce Hadley, and Chris Haskett, I truly believe that I would not have transformed into the writer I am today. I have learned many diverse writing skills from them and know that I will pass along the knowledge I gained in their classes to fellow classmates, friends, and underclassmen. Thankfully, I have been able to exercise my writing skills in Journalism as well. Throughout my life, I have always enjoyed writing; however, while taking Journalism, my love for writing has significantly increased–so much so that I am now majoring in journalism for college. If I had transferred, I know I would have never found my true love for writing the way I have at Westmont.
Furthermore, I am also grateful for many of my other teachers, like James Marshall and Eric Buran. Since I was very young, I have always been a huge fan of history, so it is safe to assume that I was ECSTATIC to take AP World History. Fortunately, my excitement was not let down whatsoever. Marshall is a remarkable teacher. There is not a single bad thing I could say about his class. Vividly, I still remember the first day of class when he had us write down on a small scratch piece of paper our preferred seating–whether it was to be seated in the back, next to certain people, or any other accommodations. The first thing I wrote down was “I don’t like sitting in the front.” The next day, when I walked into class and the seating chart was posted, I hastily scanned my eyes across the screen to find my name and was surprised to see where I was meant to sit: in the first row, right in front of his desk. Admittedly, I was a little bit irked at first, but I am so glad that I sat there the rest of the year. Sitting in the front genuinely brought me immense joy because I felt like I was able to fully enjoy the lessons and thoroughly soak in all the material like a sponge. I would recommend anyone take AP World History because all of my writing knowledge and MCQ strategies I learned from Marshall himself. Another class I would recommend taking is Street Law with Buran. Although I, unfortunately, do not have Buran as my AP Government teacher, I am thankful to have him as my Street Law teacher. Honestly, I did not know much about the class before signing up for it during my junior year programming. My only thought was, “I want to be a lawyer, therefore, I should probably take the class!” Confidently, I can confirm that I could not be any happier with my decision. Street Law teaches you not only about law but also about life. Without Buran, I would not know about the signifigance of asking my future lifelong partner the three most important questions: Are you a spender or a saver? Do you know your Bill of Rights? Are you financially literate? My dad used to always ask me when I was younger, “Hailey, did you learn anything at school today?” Half the time, I would say no because I was being honest. If my dad were to ask me that question now on every B day, I would have to say yes because every fifth period, I always learn something new. Gleefully, I feel assured that if I had transferred, not only would I have never enjoyed history as much as I do now, but I also would have never realized my desire to devote myself to law later in life.
All in all, it is safe to say that throughout my high school years, I have come to the realization that my rejection was a blessing in disguise. Although I must admit that I will always think about how great life would have been if I had been able to go to school with my closest friends, but I immediately also think about all the incredible people I have at Westmont. I could name so many other people who have positively influenced my life throughout my high school years at Westmont (but that would be a very long list).
Thus, there are two significant lessons I can take away from my experience: one, everything in life happens for a reason; and two, keep your friends close, but it is alright if your “enemies” are still closer–even if that does not mean physically.