Emilee Cox
Posted 5/16/12  

My experience at Bluefield High School was very fulfilling. My freshman year, I missed out on a lot of the initial excitement because I was on homebound for the majority of my first semester. My first day at BHS was Halloween, which was very appropriate based on my fear. However, I quickly found my place and fell into a routine. My freshman year seems so long ago because so many things have changed since then. As I reflect on my years as a Beaver, I can honestly say I would not change a thing. All of the relationships I have built and the things I have learned helped make me who I am today. I made fair-weather friends and friends I know will stay. I’ve learned more than book knowledge; I’ve learned about life in general. The teachers at Bluefield are supportive and understanding. Time after time, I’ve found comfort in their words. I am exuberant about receiving my diploma and continuing on the road to success, but I will not forget the impact that the students and teachers of Bluefield High School had on my mental maturation.

Anne Jarrell
Posted 5/16/12  

As my years of being a high school student come to a close, there is nothing I appreciate more than the lessons that I have been taught at Bluefield High School. Each experience has taught me something, whether it was a moral lesson, or just reality slapping me in the face. As time progressed, my perception of high school changed completely. I will not say the classic line, “High school was the best four years of my life” because it wasn’t. My memory does not stretch far enough for me to remember if there were four better years, nor am I capable of predicting if my future will be better. However, high school has been a blast. And even if I have a hard time accepting it, I will honestly miss it. I will miss the loads of homework and 8 o’clock classes. I will miss the always-fragrant staircases and hallways. Ill miss the underclassmen, teachers, and administrators.
The only emotions I can clearly recall from my freshman year are complete awe and confusion. I only had four classes a day. I only had core classes for half of a year. There were BOYS, boys with CARS. People could DRIVE. BHS had this spirit that I could not understand or explain. The football games were so crowded. The student section was fantastic. Everyone seemed to love BHS.
My sophomore year was a little less shocking. I felt as if I was adapting to my new surroundings. I had made new friends and kept the friends from middle school. I knew how to get to my classes and where to sit at lunch. High school had officially become routine. Being a sophomore, I had this strange idea that I actually knew everything simply because the confusion of my freshman year was gone. Clearly, this was not the case. The seniors seemed so cool. They got along with everyone and were well-organized without trying. Things just seemed to flow for them. I wanted that ease.
Being a junior was a little disappointing. I thought that driving would be the most awesome thing ever. I thought I would be viewed as “mature”. I was wrong, again. All I wanted was to be a senior and be student body president. My campaigning only took a few weeks realistically, but seemed to take the entire year. The day I was elected was the happiest day of my high school career. Being elected meant power, of course, but it also meant acceptance, which is what I had been searching for ever since I had arrived at BHS.
It finally arrived senior year. It was everything I could ask for and more! No, not really. In fact, I will be the first to say it, this year had dragged on. Perhaps it is because I had my expectations too high, but that ease that I so strongly desired never came. The only prediction I made that came true is that getting up is unfathomably difficult. Your senior project IS a big deal. Grades ARE still important. Curfew DOESN’T get any later. However, I love my friends and family more than anything, and I know my time with them is limited. So I am cherishing the days I have left as a senior at Bluefield High School.
If nothing else, BHS has helped me realize that being in a small town has its advantages. Best friends, acquaintances, and no-so-friends are close. We have a connection, whether we like it or not. Bluefield holds a lifetime of memories, cruses, and people that I wouldn’t forget for anything. Debating with Mrs. Jones, having “life-talks” with Mrs. Lilly, and being in the student section at two championship games will remain with me for the rest of my life. I can even proudly admit that harsh might like me, a little bit, maybe. Dr. Black has done an excellent job as our new principal. Pretty much, high school has been a great time. It has taught me that Bluefield is a great place to be, even if there isn’t much to do. Being older doesn’t make your smarter or more mature. If I could suggest anything to upcoming freshmen, it would be not to try to imagine how things will be next year. Just let things happen, because I can guarantee that being one year older will not be as cool as you think. Enjoy your years, or hate them. That’s up to you. High school is exactly what you make it, get involved, graduate, and be happy.

Ian Lovern
Posted 5/16/12  

It has been almost four years since I first came to Bluefield High School. It has definitely flown by faster than I would have liked. Any advice I could give would be to not spend your time looking forward to the next year. Enjoy being a freshman. Then enjoy a sophomore. When it is your turn to be an upperclassman, enjoy that just as much. I remember going to the state tennis tournament my freshman year. Doing it for the last time next week will definitely be an emotional experience. I have made friends in this school that I will continue to spend time with for the rest of my life. That is the most important thing. The relationships I’ve built with both teachers and students will be ones that I cherish for years to come. Yes, there are things about my experience that I would change, but I embrace them just the same. The huge variety of emotions and situations experienced in high school are what make these years so unforgettable. Appreciate them, because you will miss them as much as I’m sure I will.

Michael Rogers
Posted 5/16/12  

As I write this reflection upon the last four years of my life, I realize that there is so much that I want to share with you. I could probably fill a small novel with the advice and many suggestions that I have for all of the underclassmen, but unfortunately I am limited to this mere article. If however, I was given the chance to travel back in time and talk to myself when I first stepped into the halls of Bluefield High, I would have one piece of advice to share above any other. That advice is to accept that change happens and that it is inevitable. This change is often surprising and even unpleasant at times, but no matter how much you want things to stay the same, they won’t. You will see the growth, decay, and complete transformation of almost all of those around you, including yourself. The friends you have now may very well not be there for you when you graduate, and some people who you could never imagine talking to may end up being the only people you trust in the end. You yourself will undoubtedly change but into what is up to you. Do not let others, who surround you, define who you are as a person. When you finally walk out of the halls of Bluefield High School for the last time, be sure you’re walking out as someone you are proud of.

Zach Hampton
Posted 5/4/12  

Bluefield High School has been a very good experience for me. I have had some great accomplishments throughout the years I’ve been a BHS student. During my sophomore year I went to states for tennis and won the regional final at 2 doubles with my partner Nick Mitchem to advance to states. Going to states was a great experience for me and we made it to the 2nd round of the state tournament and took a loss to Charleston Catholic. I think sophomore year also was great because I made good grades and stayed on the A and B honor role. My junior year was a good year also; I had great success on the soccer field and I scored a ton of goals, and many assist. I made the 2nd team Coal Field conference. Junior year I also won my regional final in tennis and won the region as a team. In doubles Nick Mitchem and I won the regional final over the Oak Hill number 2 doubles. In states I started doing work and won the first two rounds to play in the final at number 3 singles and lost to Charleston Catholic. In doubles Nick and I lost doubles to Catholic in the semi-final round. Junior year I also always saw Mrs. Tony and Mrs. Cutlip walking through the halls all the time during their planning period. Now that it’s my senior year and I only have three weeks left I actually realize that I’m going to miss high school a lot. I have had many of accomplishments this year, but it has also been kind of bad year here and there. The accomplishments I’ve made are things such as, being all-state for soccer, and being 1st team Coal Field Conference. I also scored a ton of goals and had many assists. First semester I always remember seeing Harsh and Via walking the halls everyday during their lunch time, now that second semester came around and their lunches were split up they can’t do it anymore. I have been working hard in school and in tennis so I can get a state championship, and plus I won another regional final for two years in a row. In doubles Ian Lovern and I just fell short of the doubles number 1 final to Oak Hill. Now we are off to state on Wednesday the 9th, but going in as number 2 from our region and it’s going to be pretty rough here and there. My senior year has been okay to me, but I’m just ready to get out of this high school, and go off to college to play tennis at Bluefield College.