By Diana Nuno, Executive Editor

Everything changes, and that’s just the way life is. Especially in high school. People get taller, voices get deeper, and cliques are formed and destroyed.

Some of us have adjusted by now, some of us aren’t sure how, and some of us don’t know any other way because our lives change so often. In high school, change is inevitable.

Change is uncomfortable and upsetting, but sometimes, it’s for the better.

But it has to happen, and we have to learn that not everything is our choice. It’s how we deal with it that matters.

This year, several things changed. As a student body we were introduced to several new teachers and staff members.

At the beginning of the year, we felt the change right away. An example is the infamous parking lot policy: we’re now accustomed to it and it has proven to be more efficient.

While not all students resist change, it’s safe to say not all change is done willingly. But more changes are rapidly approaching: underclassmen are going to be switching to the eight-period day, one of the biggest transitions during their high school careers, and seniors are heading off into the real world. Some goodbyes are temporary, but for some students who enlisted in the military,  leave is as early as June 3.

So, while we’re here and while things are changing, we might as well cope the best we can.

Students should be taking change as an opportunity to learn what the real world is going to be like.

“Change is always hard in the beginning, and people always aren’t open to it, but they will eventually get accustomed to it and become more optimistic,” Carissa Miller, sophomore, said.

As a staff, we are losing our adviser of four  years, Cheryl Borrowdale. Borrowdale is a guru when it comes to anything. And we mean anything. She’s a wizard with InDesign and an insanely wise mentor.

Between the shorter periods and the change in advisers, there will be major changes on Krier. Most of what we do as a staff involves deadlines, intense debates and brainstorming; doing it on a shorter schedule and with a new adviser will be an adjustment.

Yet we can approach it as a learning opportunity instead of as a doom-and-gloom scenario. It’s the exact kind of opportunity that should take place during high school.

This change will prompt students to take control and provide guidance, something that otherwise wouldn’t happen.

It’s constantly a shuffle, but we can never get too comfortable. That’s what makes change harder to accept and adjust to.

“Change is a normal part of life that at times can bring us challenges. Challenges make us stronger,” Melissa Maloney, government teacher, said.

The four years students’ experience may be the best or may be a nightmare, but it’s nowhere near the end.

The content of these halls teach the adolescent mind more than just algebraic equations. More than about a covalent bond, more than about just past participles.

“Teens have a strong attachment to certain identities, what you know is a part of your identity. Who you are without this is a big reason people stay in something unhealthy,” Patrick Trapp, social worker, said.

Right now, while our lives are as simple as they’re going to get, we need to familiarize ourselves with what change is like.

Switching classes is a refreshing feeling after the months we spent with the same people. As much as we want to imagine that life is unicorns and rainbows, it’s not going to get easier.

We’re all adjusting to the changes that were made this year, and we’ll learn to adjust when the 8-period day is fully implemented.

But we have a tremendous amount of people at our disposal to help.

Although the counselors are supposed to only deal with our schedules, they do much, much more than that. They have the ability to alter our classes and offer priceless advice. The counselors offer a tremendous amount of guidance and are an amazing resource for students to use.

“For teens it’s helpful to have an older wiser mentor, to normalize change, or have a friend who can relate. Don’t internalize what you’re feeling about change, talk about it,” Trapp said.

Change is just a part of growing up. Whether it’s good or bad, we’ll get through it.