I want to take this time to share two experiences that show defining aspects of how St. Andrew’s has changed my life for the better. 

Throughout my time at St. Andrew’s, there have been many times where I have been uncertain about what to do or what will happen. One of the moments that best exemplifies this uncertainty was with the spring play, The Da Vinci Code.

Coming into the last week before our performance on Saturday, things were not looking great. We were having trouble remembering our lines, our staging was not very refined, and some props were beginning to fall apart and break. Many of us, including myself, were worried that we would not be able to make the play happen with the time that we had left, even though we knew it was possible.

Because of the uncertainty, Mrs. Taylor made a change in plans in order to ensure that we got enough practice to make the performance happen in the way we wanted it to go. Instead of doing a complete run-through each night, like we would normally do during tech week, we instead went through the first act twice in the same night.

After each rehearsal that week I began to feel more and more confident in our ability to make the play happen as everything began to come together. This last minute change to the plan worked, and it worked well.

Yet despite the practice we had done by the time we got to the final performance on Saturday, we still had never gone through the play without stopping for scene changes or other issues. Ultimately, however, the performance went off with very few issues proving the anxiety we all had to be false. Without the support and guidance that Mrs. Taylor provided us in the last week of rehearsal, I do not think that the production would have gone as well as it did.

The second moment I want to talk about is back from during freshman year. When I arrived onto campus for the first time, I was much less confident and more introverted than I am now; in fact I was rather nervous but excited to meet everyone. Despite wanting to connect with others, I was scared to tell people things about myself, like what music I listen to or what I was actually interested in. However, this nervousness towards being authentic was gone after one interaction I had during the Square Dance on my first night.

After joining up with a random group of people for the dancing, I ended up being in a group with Sophie Mo. Instead of exclusively dancing and talking to others in her grade, she was open and excited to talk to people she did not know. Her outgoing and kind personality eased my worries about not being able to fit in or find people who I would become lifelong friends with.

Sophie demonstrated the St. Andrew’s culture of being kind, open, and welcoming me into the community.

Although I almost immediately realized that being authentic would allow me to know everyone better and increase my ability to be happy and make friends, I found it very difficult to implement this change. It is only because of the kind and loving community here at St. Andrew’s that I began to open up to others about myself more and I almost immediately noticed a positive impact on my life.

Ultimately, my time at St. Andrew’s has allowed me to become confident in expressing myself and staying calm in uncertain situations.

I would like to thank the class of 2026 for all the support, kindness, and community they have shown me throughout these past four years. Let's have a great time during these final few days.