Everyone is dealt their own hand of cards, their own unique situations and skills. In newspapers, and in high school more broadly, people all end up specializing and adapting to what they have been given.

I had transferred to LASA my sophomore year and had entered the LASA Liberator with no experience with any Adobe programs, while most of my classmates are already well-versed with Adobe because of Ezine. Initially, I had felt disadvantaged but I ended up loving Adobe. My classmates were able to produce amazing graphics, and the finished news pages felt like a crazy feat to me. Fortunately, when I was a staffer, I didn’t need to interact with Adobe too much. However,  I did begin using some of my time to experiment and learn about the program. Being able to access a purely creative platform fascinated me. I started with anchor points, to lines to shapes to more complex shapes and eventually to graphics. Specifically, I still think it is cool that I can draw pants zippers with the paintbrush tool. Soon enough as my year went on, I found myself making post cards using Illustrator and page designs using InDesign. I was awed by the amount of digital media I was able to produce, so in my second year I had applied to be an editor and was given the opportunity to design and illustrate my very own pages. Looking retrospectively, I would think I have done a pretty fine job with my pages this year.  As I discovered in my first year as a staffer, my strength didn’t lie in interviews or writing articles, but instead in making pages and illustrations. 

These years at LASA really allowed me to experiment and test my limitations as a student and person. I specialized and found my own place within the paper. My four years of high school had not been smooth sailing. There were family struggles, loss, and challenges along the way. But I also learned a lot about myself through it all.

I understand that while the environment at LASA can seem competitive and it often pushes you to look at others more than yourself. Sometimes, though, you just have to stop and look at how far you have come. High school is a time to experiment, take risks and to learn from those around you. But ultimately, everyone is dealt a different hand in life and we all have to learn the unique way in which we can play ours.