Cherishable: Juliet
High school is full of memories that our parents rave about at every opportunity they get. Evolving music, clothes and events all spark a memory in which a parent says, “This song came out in high school and my friends were obsessed with it,” or “That top looks identical to what I used to wear in high school.” High school lingers around everywhere, and while a junior ring is a small piece of jewelry, it encapsulates many memories.
Junior year marks the transition to focusing on preparing for the next steps in every student’s future. Regardless of where your future is headed, the one thing every student has in common is their high school years.
When I first started my high school journey as a freshman, my mom brought out her junior ring, and she recalled the memories she had throughout high school. Her friends, her classes, the crazy events she encountered and even how she met my dad. Her ring brings back all these memories that shaped her future.
Sure, everyone’s high school experience varies and includes some hardships one may not want to remember. However, all the obstacles faced throughout high school have typically only made people stronger and taught them lessons to take into the future. And let’s be real, are you really going to look at your ring and still be annoyed about when Sally took your ex-boyfriend, John, to try to ruin your life? Probably not.
Junior rings reflect the growth and happiness experienced, and while these rings are not worn frequently, they serve as a miniature treasure to celebrate all the good times in high school.
Moreover, junior year is a year filled with drifting friendships, academic stress and the confusion of what the future holds. Of course, these aspects are not what you want your junior ring to spark back into your memory, but your ring does not just represent the challenging year junior year is.
A junior ring represents all your high school years, all the friendships that were made, all the lessons that were learned, all the times you felt proud, all the times you worked hard and all the times you want to remember.
It is crazy how such a small piece of jewelry can hold so many memories.
Right now, it may seem like a waste of money or a time you would rather forget. But think for your future self and what you would cherish most about your high school years, because once you graduate, nothing is quite like high school.
Forgettable: Siena Feigenbaum
Your junior year might be the biggest one of high school; you become an upperclassman, feel the pressure of college coming around the corner, load up on harder courses and face the social pressure of losing and gaining friendships.
Junior year represents lots of growth, which can be marked through your junior ring. Junior rings serve as a slice of a memory of all the hard work and preparation that will propel us into our final year of high school.
You can adorn your ring with different imprints that represent your sport, favorite activities and more.
This all sounds great, right?
Well, not everything about your junior year is worth cherishing. Truthfully, most of it slips away.
For many Miami Palmetto Senior High juniors, junior year could be the most academically stressful time of their lives. Balancing everything in your life, combined with the plethora of work, creates a hectic year lasting from August to June.
However, academics are only a small portion of the stress. Most of us deal with toxic friendships, failed relationships and the strain of the pressure we inflict on ourselves to meet our own standards. Why would anyone want to wear a ring in 20 years that reminds them of the agony and sleepless nights of our junior year?
The idea of having a forever memoir to wear around after our junior year seems silly. For most students, if there is a moment you want to remember, you open your phone and take a picture. That is it.
Another reason the junior ring idea remains foolish lies in the question of who will really wear the ring. Sure, if you attend your high school reunion where you have forgotten everyone’s names, you might slide your precious ring on (if it still fits) and remember your vigorous junior year when the memories flood your brain. Others may lose their ring, or even forget it exists, after the junior ring ceremony in the latter part of our junior year.
Those who really cherish the memories and friendships of their junior year will stay in contact with their friends. That alone serves as a reminder of our junior year.
