Building bonds and memories during Senior Weekend

As teenagers move closer to adulthood, we face many stressful situations that come hand- in-hand with growing up. It is so easy to get caught up in the act of designing ideal futures that only the “right college” would congeal, and in the attempt to glaze over upcoming midterms with the same amount of success as our past exams, that we lose sight of the simple things in life that can bring us so much joy and relief.
We forget how much fun it is to launch a snowball at a friend, or the exhilarating feeling of being able to run outside, relinquished from walls, desks, and worries. These feelings were once so commonplace during our childhood, and it felt amazing to be given the opportunity to remember and revisit them with classmates I have known since kindergarten during the Lawrence High School Senior Weekend.
When my classmates and I boarded the busses on Jan. 17, we didn’t quite know what the next few days had in store. All we knew was that we were going to get on a bus and that would drop us off at some magical place in upstate New York with unlimited food and activities.
We stayed at a recreational hotel known as Honor’s Haven Resort. The hotel had so many activities available. There was something for everyone, from horseback riding to bingo. On the night of our arrival, an indoor heated swimming pool awaited our rosy noses and thawing hands. There was an arcade room open until midnight and a dance party scheduled with students from every high school could mingle. The following morning I woke up early and trudged uphill with 65 other classmates in camouflage uniforms to play a few intense games of paintball in the icy woods. We defended our teammates, dodged little orange paint bullets, and hid behind trees and prearranged wooden barricades until we were exhausted and in dire need of some hot chocolate.
Although Senior Weekend was centered on the plethora of activities we could participate in, what really made it special was that it was one of the few times when just about the entire grade was able to get together. We shared hallways and dining tables, but more importantly laughs and memories. 
After coming back from Senior Weekend, I now feel a sense of unity that I did not feel before and I know that this trip will stand out in the blur of recollections that will soon be high school.