Departing eighth-grader Eleanor reflects on her earliest memory of Two Rivers when she told her preschool teacher that it was her first day, but funny enough, it was everyone’s first day. After spending nearly her whole childhood at Two Rivers, she is now preparing to dock her boat and embark on a new voyage: high school.
Growing up in the same school community brought Eleanor many experiences and lessons, some embarrassing, others enlightening, but all deeply formative. “When I was younger, I never thought much about my feelings towards Two Rivers,” she shares. “It was just the place I went to school, but now I have a much stronger appreciation for this community.”
Eleanor describes Two Rivers in three words: open, kind, and communicative. Students are encouraged to be themselves, express their feelings, and embrace all scholarly habits. Specifically for Eleanor, the scholarly habit I Know Myself resonates most with her. While understanding concepts was effortless for her in elementary school, the increased rigor of middle school taught her the value of inquiry and vocalizing her areas of confusion.
As classmates came and went and teachers shifted, Eleanor’s one continuous journey through Two Rivers stayed consistent. She discovered a love for reading, writing, and editing. Her transition over the years was seamless, as she became involved in extracurricular activities, such as the debate club and the middle school musical. It was through these experiences of costuming, decision-making, and improvisation that she learned how to pivot and adapt.
Eleanor also credits Two Rivers with helping instill in her the act of perseverance. “Two Rivers will be a place that is really helpful if you let it help you; it will teach you how to push through and get back up when you feel like you shouldn’t,” she shares. Alongside perseverance, she learned and experienced the act of kindness and respect. “A lot of the time, students feel as if adults treat them like kids, instead of human beings,” she added. The relationships she has cultivated with staff are truly meaningful, and while obvious boundaries exist, she feels deeply connected to them beyond academics.
For Eleanor, Two Rivers did not just help shape the person she is today; it made her. “Your personality is cultivated through individual experiences,” she shares, “and you wouldn’t be the person you are had you not gone through certain things.”
Shocked that it’s her last couple of days on the boat, her reality of change still feels surreal. However, she steps gracefully into her next chapter with optimism about the future and the independence high school has to offer. Reflecting on her journey, Eleanor offers one piece of advice to her younger self that still holds true today: “Things are going to get insane, and it’s not going to be exactly how I imagined it, but trust that it will all work out.”
And it did.
~Isa Walker, Communications Associate
