Looking back…

My senior year started and ended within three weeks.

Literally. 

No senior skip day. (Well, distance learning did make every other day skip day, so I might leave this one out.)

No bazaar days on weekdays.

No JSB.

No cutting into the lunch line.

NO SENOR PRIVILEGES. Let’s end it there! (Although we did have our gadgets all night…)

Instead, I got a week of isolation, popularly known as quarantine.

Homesickness because I felt lonelier than ever during the time. 

No control over my emotions because every day new news hit me. 

But, without rain, there are no flowers. 

Looking back, returning to school was the reason I got one last time with friends. Friends I thought I would never see again. 

A mini graduation ceremony that reminded me of the eighth-grade banquet. Fun times for sure!

A senior class picture in our class colours (with masks on!). 

Tangerine Boxx coffee anytime.

As for Aeternum, it was my last chance to make memories with you all.

Memories. 

A whole bunch of memories stay locked up in my head. From the day I set foot on the campus, till today as I write this. I wish I could relive them, just the way they are. 

Opening the door to my first dorm room in Midlands back in 2015 just to discover the massive trunk of my Korean roommate on my half of the room, to eventually being the one in her position as semesters rolled by. I still wonder how six years elapsed. 

Senior year seemed so far away. “I still have so much time left,” I remember thinking. When that changed into days, I didn’t even notice. 

I didn’t know living away from Woodstock would be this hard. I go to bed thinking of the midnight conversations my roommate and I would have even on weekdays, the sleepovers every weekend spent gossiping, and not turning my lights off even though Mrs. Jun was yelling in the hallways. And how can I forget, sneaking into each other’s rooms at night. It felt like a massive achievement at times!

Which place do you call home?

A question asked and answered by most of us. 

Home is where the heart is, and right now, my heart is in my congested room in Midlands, where I spent hours procrastinating over assignments while watching countless videos on YouTube. Where Farzin and I watched movies together, constantly pausing to comment on the characters. Where Mihika chased after me every time I tried to irritate her. Where Sapna bragged about her fairy lights and invited me to her well-heated cozy room. And where so many other friends and I spent quality time together. 

These are just a handful of memories that I refuse to forget and there are more that I share with others, including some of you reading this. 

Getting chased by monkeys. Who hasn’t gone through that misery! 

Walking up to school on a snowy morning, and being scared of falling any second. “THE UMBRELLA IS TOO HEAVY!”

Ordering food from Pyuthanis because it was the only affordable option at the end of the month. “I am broke.”

Booking a red velvet cake from Landour Bakehouse on a friend’s birthday. “Just ask Mr. Ketan Swami.”

Losing your voice during Win Mumby. “Let’s go Woodstock. Lets go”

Controlling your pee because double-dipping isn’t allowed in Mr. Beavan’s class. 

Getting away from your advisor night by invading someone else’s. 

I definitely don’t have the chance to make any more of these; however, I will relish the ones stored in my memory forever. 

So, thank you Aeternum for becoming my second family. For teaching me to grow in more ways than expected. For making me realise that I need to learn to stand up for myself if I want others to join in. And most importantly, for showing me the value of having good friends. 

As I conclude this six-year-long journey, I sincerely hope that not one of us turns into a stranger for the other whether or not we have had a single conversation during our time here. My wish for us is to forget the miseries and take back the happiest memories we all made together. 

And, as we all close this chapter of our lives, I hope that none of us hesitate in saying, “just hit me up whenever.” 

Good luck Aeternum! I can’t wait to see what we make out of ourselves!

Archita Aggarwal is an editor-in-chief emeritus