On December 30, the seniors gathered in the XM annex for another assembly. This time, they listened to two presentations, one given by Cher and Katherine, as well as one by Katelyn.

First, Cher and Katherine introduced their mural project (the SHSID Mural Committee) to the students. The two students hope to raise awareness and care for students' mental health through artistic expression. Before that, they organized the whole grade of students to write New Year's wishes, which not only placed good expectations on the future, but also helped everyone relieve pressure. They are also planning to hold a major event some time in February to raise awareness about mental health. They concluded their presentation by encouraging anyone interested in the arts, social service, and/or mental health topics to join the committee.

Katelyn then shared some of her thoughts and insight on the college application process. She described her journey after receiving a rejection letter, and she believes that receiving a rejection letter from a college is not a reflection on your ability, for there too many uncontrollable factors that go into it. Reading a message from her mom, Katelyn reminded the audience that there are many people around us who really care about us, so we don't need to worry that our rejections from college will not live up to others' expectations. Finally, Katelyn used a garden path analogy to convey to the students that students have many choices and paths in life - that it is important not to blindly follow the traditional path to success, but to find what is most meaningful to them. Katelyn's speech encouraged the students to face the coming application season with a better attitude.

The last part of an endeavor is the hardest to finish. Now is the most critical period for seniors' college applications. Through the two speeches, the students' anxiety relieved a bit. We hope the students can face all the challenges in life with a more healthy and positive attitude.

(Written by Anita Lo 12(2) Pictures by Hao Sun Edited and Supervised by Sijia He Reviewed by Qian Zuo)