can I make a toast?

here's to highschool

here's to the 3:00 am last minute homework and test cramming

here's to the person who sent out the picture on Twitter with all the schools wifi passwords

here's to my best friends and friends I've lost along the way

here's to the mono infested drinking fountains and trunking

here's to the teachers who cared and changed lives 

here's to the teal colored lockers that didn't match anything else in the school

here's to the tools and tool-ets who sat by the knight and looked down on everyone else

here's to the kids who were kind and said hi to everyone

here's to the kid with glasses sitting in the back row of floral design, I always admired you

here's to the dances, singing journey don't stop believing and chanting SENIOR YEAR at the top of our lungs

here's to the boys I "went out with" who put up with holding my cold hands and dealing with my awkwardness

here's to the teachers who had to teach out in the trailers that smelled like bologna 

here's to the football games, basketball games, spirit bowls, and everything else that filled our school with spirit that brought everyone together

here's to eating your home lunch in second period and being hungry again in third

here's to the three hundred dollar outfits and to the sweat pants and Jesus sandals

here's to Nelson and him putting up with having me every single day in creative writing AND English

here's to him for allowing me to be a tourist and listen in on the countless life lessons in his classes even though I always sucked at writing

here's to the parking tickets

here's to the kids who felt alone and sat in the hallways by themselves, I'm sorry.

here's to the notes taped to lockers and inspirational messages written in side walk chalk that got me through the days when I didn't feel like I could go on anymore

here's to "gooooood morning Knights" "it's time" "reaching your peak" and "becoming one"

here's to the gum under the desks and constantly in my mouth chewing 

here's to the administration and faculty for all the hard work and heart they put into their jobs

here's to the kneaders French toast during boring assemblies 

here's to Lynn Combs in the hallways telling me to "GET TO CLASS!"

here's to the snooze button on my alarm clock

here's to world class and being labeled as the "rich kids" even though some of us are still poor

here's to quotes on the walls in the hallways to look up at when there's an awkward situation

here's to knightline news for making everyone feel important 

here's to Frank Jackson for making our school famous and being a baller

here's to borrowing the hall pass and roaming the halls for 30 minutes

here's to the school cop for whatever crimes he fights on a daily

here's to the band room that I never set foot in

here's to the kids who sat with the special needs kids during lunch 

here's to the vending machines that used to be good before Michelle Obama ruined them with nasty food

here's to the 600 hall 

here's to the janitor who smiled at me every time I walked past him

here's to the the 9826151930 pens and pencils I lost along the way 

here's to Rhonda Bromley for genuinely caring and loving every single student at lone peak even if she still doesn't know my name 

here's to the report cards and extra credit 

here's to AP Calc and Craig smith for changing my life forever #pebblesofhope

here's to the student council for EVERYTHING they did and the hundreds of hours they put in to make our school great

here's to the cars I cut off every morning driving to school and for the people who let me go Infront of them to get out of the parking lot 

here's to McDonald's and Walmart for being there to walk over to every single day sophomore year 

here's to the boy with the ukulele in the hallway who made me realize how precious life really is

here's to early morning seminary devotionals and seminary teachers for acting like they believed I actually read the entire Old Testament 

here's to the moldy showers in the girls locker rooms

here's to you and to me and the countless memories and people I'll never forget in highschool

here's to graduation and that moment and feeling I'll soon have of throwing my cap into the air and the next chapter in life

here's to highschool

I love you lone peak 

drum roll please . . .

hey guys 

it's Liz Evensen here

SURPRISEEEEEEEE  

xoxo 

Wins n losses

I won a soccer game once 

#cool

You made me a robot

My favorite dance move never was the robot until I met you

And now everytime I get shoved into the middle of a dance circle, it's all I can really seem to do

I lost my humanity by knowing you

You turned me into another factory designed, "Made In China" object 

and I hate that

I want to know what it's like to be human again

So this is me changing from auto to manual

The green "ON" switch is now "OFF" 

No more nuts, bolts, screws, and grease

I'm ready for a change

And im ready to be human again

Teenagers, man.

ADDICTIONS:

Cell phone

Parties

Popularity

In n out 

Sneaking out 

The gym (for all the meat heads out there) 

Sleeping

Boyfriends or girlfriends

Attention

Gum

Head phones

Themselves

Long canyon drives

Kiss stix 

Adventure 

Being independent 

Driving really really fast 

Good music

Feeling like they belong

Tap

Converse and hipster glasses

Going to kneaders during assemblies 

Freedom

Sitting by the knight

Make up & fake eyelashes 

Being cool 

SIDE EFFECTS:

Failing classes

Constantly moody

Always hungry

Sleepy

Lazy

Irresponsible 

The need to fit in

The need to stand out

Uncomfortable with themselves 

Achne 

Wanting to be alone

Selfish

Disappointing people

Wacked up hormones

Not knowing the difference between love and lust

Puberty

Pushing out the people who love them the most 

Not measuring up 

Crying for no reason at all 

Low self esteem 

Ruining relationships 

Sensitive to EVERYTHING 

Being a teenager is hard.

I wish there was a prescription that could ease the pain.

But there's not and it's still worth it.

Because later on in life we're going to look back on this moment and feel nostalgic.

Questions I've been dying to ask you

Every quiet second that passes as I sit here in this cold leather seat feels like eternity. 

I have so much to say to you but I can't quite put it into words.

Is the radio loud enough to mask the sound of my heart beating a million miles an hour?

This silence is piercing my ear drums and I don't know if I can take it much longer.

.

.

.

I'm just dying to hear everything that's inside of your heart. 

Everything about you.

Every little tiny piece of you that makes you YOU!

What makes you the happiest and causes your dimples to show and nose to crinkle up the way it always does.

What makes you cry and break down to the point where you feel unfixable.

What your passions and plans are for the future.

If you feel the way I do when that cage of butterflies gets released inside of my stomach.

What you wish for when the clock reads 11:11.

If you really do like Thai food and the stars or if you're just saying that to agree with me.

I used to play this game with my dad where we would ask what the other person was thinking at that exact moment and you had to tell the truth about whatever it was you were thinking about.

I wish everyone knew about that game.

So can we play? 

What's going on inside of that spaghettied brain of yours?

the 18 bricks that built me

Brick 1- diapers, baby spit-up, binkies, chubby cheeks, first words, and bottles.

Brick 2- temper tantrums, potty training, sass, and coloring books.

Brick 3- scooters, broken crayons, messy hair, and disney princesses.

Brick 4- polly pockets, dress up, busy bee preschool, best friend, and new swing set.

Brick 5- cabin adventures, kindergarten, first crush, and junie b jones books.

Brick 6- kissing tag, soccer star, babysitters, getting caught running on top of the roof, and mega-sass.

Brick 7- playing spies, catching pet bees, glitter balls, moved to highland,  independence, and lighting the microwave on fire heating up glitter glue sculptures. 

Brick 8- unfinished basements, getting up on the wakeboard, riding my bike everywhere, baptism, and guitar lessons.

Brick 9- spelling tests, piano lessons, getting in trouble for talking too much in class, sleepovers, and embarrassing 

notes from mom in homemade lunches.

Brick 10- braces, best friend necklaces, laughing at everything imaginable, four square, stealing from the book fair, and pajama day/crazy hair day.

Brick 11- the transition from "playing" with friends to "hanging" with friends, science fair, boy/girl birthday parties, counting to 60 for your turn on the swings, troublemaker, spending hours on club penguin, and meeting my best friend.

Brick 12- dad got cancer, sixth grade Valentine's Day dance, first cell phone, being in the school play, and hating my older brother.

Brick 13- being called a "sevie" in middle school, finally a teenager, lockers, no more braces, awkwardness, being "asked out" for the first time, and thinking that running a mile for p.e was impossible.

Brick 14- finding friends, riding motor scooters everywhere, going to parties, lunch detention, health class, dress codes, curfews, and rules. 

Brick 15- first kiss, senior lagoon day, back talking parents, sneaking out for the first time, driving a car for the first time, adventure, and doing anything for a dare.

 

Brick 16- high school, football games, dating, school dances, caring about what I looked like, driving, crashing the car, thinking the seniors were so old and so tall and so mature. 

Brick 17- attandance school, so much attandance school, not caring anymore, learned how to fake laugh, 2 friends passing away, emotional and physical hell, and worst year of my life.

Brick 18- sunshine, new friends, SENIOR YEAR, senioritis, trying new things, finding myself, happy, applying to colleges, planning, future, adulthood, and growing up.