One of the first thoughts I had on the first day of school was “Oh yeah, I forgot that Tumblr is hard to use on campus.” That’s right, my first worry of the year was how exactly I was going to get through a day without Tumblr, the app that seemed like my vitamin D this summer.

Don’t get me wrong, I was also worried about slightly more relevant topics pertaining to school: Why did I sign up for this? How long until graduation? Why did I think that four AP classes out of the five in my schedule would be a good idea? Is it too late to become a high school dropout and pursue a career with the circus?

But I’m here, you’re here, we are all here starting this year, enthusiastic or not. We can do this.

To the small freshmen who feel lost, confused, and mildly (or greatly) intimidated by everyone who’s older than you. Believe it or not, upperclassmen are not that scary. We might look a little dead inside, but that doesn’t make us literal zombies. Also, this may seem like this huge milestone in your life from ‘awkward middle school’ to ‘cool and hip high school,’ but the teachers make the transition incredibly smooth. Yes, there will be blinding differences between middle and high school, but it’s not that bad. Also, remember that when walking in the halls, try to stick to the right, or when in doubt go with the flow of older looking kids, and slowly walking in a large group of friends will undoubtedly awaken the upperclassmen from their apathy just long enough to be incredibly annoyed.

To the sophomores, who are now in that awkward stage where you’re not a freshman, but you still have two years to go before you graduate. In all honesty, in some aspects this year will seem boring. You’ll have good classes, but there’s no longer the excitement of starting at a new school, and the light at the end of the tunnel looks like a pinprick right now. Take this year to enjoy the fact that you don’t have to worry about the SATs, ACTs or AP tests, and revel in the fact that you don’t have to look extensively into colleges just yet.

To the juniors who are being told that this year will be hell. It’s actually not that bad! Well, okay, it’s pretty bad, and if you’re taking AP US History and AP English then you will more than likely cry a couple of times. But, your previous class and Fitz and Kindred weren’t lying when they said that they would take care of you. Go in with the intent to learn, pay attention in class, and put effort into the work assigned. You’ll definitely feel closer to your fellow APers by the end of the year (especially since some will be sharing heavy and personal topics with your final speeches, but Fitz and Kindred will tell you more about that when the time comes).

To my fellow seniors, some of which who’ve already been taken by senioritis. Contrary to what a lot of older generations have told you, senior year will be the hardest year. Depending on what kind of classes you take, your workload will increase from last year, and then college applications will be added on top. All of the senior events will be fun, but we’ll still probably be dead inside. Just remember, if others have graduated and gone to college before, we can too! There also seems to be the general consensus that while senior year is the real hell, it ends in the blink of an eye.

Yes, we are indeed back, and we can do this.