Sometimes there is nothing better than looking back at old photographs and bringing back old memories. These events could have happened just a few weeks, months or even years ago, yet living in a digital age means that we are able to document our lives now even more then ever. Over the next few weeks in true 'Throwback Thursday' style I am going to be reminiscing, taking a trip down memory lane.
These posts will include photos and stories from my past and will include some of the biggest events that have happened to me in the past 18 years. From growing up to attending Prom in 2011, I'm going to look back at the music I used to listen to and the books I used to read as well as sharing some memorable stories.
My first throwback will be to July 2011, nearly three years ago now, the night of my Year 11 prom. After finishing all of our GCSE exams my whole year was invited to spend one more evening together before we all left school and went on to sixth form, college or even work. I had been on the Prom Committee, helping to organise the evening and like my peers, was so excited for the night.
When the day finally arrived, I certainly made the most of it. Although we didn't need to be at the venue until around 7-7.30pm I actually started getting ready around mid-day. I walked to my Mum's work and we went to my hairdresser's who styled and curled my hair for me. I knew exactly what I wanted and absolutely loved what my hairdresser did and the style lasted the whole night!
After my hair was finished it was a quick rush back to my home town where I quickly popped into town to buy a new foundation and to get my nails done. I loved my nails, as they matched my dress perfectly and were so intricate because I had floral patterns painted by hand too.
After leaving town I remember not having much time at all to do anything more to my makeup apart from touching up the stuff I was already wearing. I then got on my dress and put on my accessories and after a few photos made my way down to the seafront in my Mum's car.
Around 5.30pm myself and my friends met at the seafront where we had professional photos taken of us by a brilliant local photographer. Our friend had won the shoot at a prom fair type thing a few month previous and it was lovely to catch up with friends and have so many photos taken before we actually went to prom. As we had someone to take the photos for us, no-one missed out on having their photo taken and we were so lucky with the weather because it was a gorgeous evening.
After we had our photos taken our transport arrived to take us to the venue. Myself and a few of my friends went in a classic white limo, complete with a playlist of music which we could control and a complementary bottle of non-alcoholic drink and the others went in a vintage car, which matched one of our friend's dress.
I remember us all being so happy on the way to prom, singing and dancing along to so many good songs and about 20 minutes later we arrived at the Golf Club where our prom was held.
When we arrived there was already loads of people there. There were some rather interesting dresses and suits admittedly but overall everyone looked amazing.
Our school year was always big and so when our teachers attempted to get a whole year photo it didn't exactly work. Even to this day I don't think I've seen this attempt but I know it can't be good because there was no organisation to it at all. There was tall people in front of short people and I'm pretty sure even standing on a table didn't get everyone in the shot.
After the attempted photo shoot we went inside and were seated for our main meal. For starters I had chicken with parma ham I think (tasted like rubber), main was meant to be roast beef (but no Yorkshire puddings!) and for dessert I had chocolate torte (the best part.) After the average dinner we crammed onto the tiny dance floor and had lots of fun dancing to some of the classics.
Our prom night ended around midnight when our limo arrived to take us home and the music stopped playing. We then went on to a house party at a friend's house which ended a brilliant night although many of us were exhausted.
My Year 11 prom was absolutely amazing and I wouldn't have changed any of it. Although it was the last time I saw some people in my year, there was no better way to celebrate all the hard work and effort we had all put in throughout our GCSE's.
Looking back on it now it's hard to believe that this Summer it was three years ago since Prom. So much has changed since that summer but it's so good to have the photos to look back at and the memories that go with them.
After spending the past two years of our lives working hard and experiencing many ups and downs, Thursday was the time to pick up our results. For many, it would determine whether or not they would be going to University in September and whether they would be going to their first choice or second choice Uni. It was time to see if all the hard work, stress and lack of sleep was worth it and for the first time find out how well that 'brilliant' exam actually went.
When I was getting ready to go to my school to pick up my own results, I was expecting to find people really nervous. I remember last year when I went to collect my AS results that there were people in the year above crying because they didn't get the results that they wanted and this memory was in the back of my mind.
However, the atmosphere was totally different to what I expected when I went to get my results. This was mainly because Universities had already text/emailed students if they had got the grades to get in. This meant everyone knew if they were going to Uni even before they found out what grades they had. Pretty much everybody I know have subsequently got into either their first or second university choice and this illustrates the sheer amount of hard work that was put in this year. For the first time it has started to feel real that people will be leaving our small town in around 4 weeks. Everybody will be going their own separate ways and it's going to be really strange. Furthermore, I no longer have to step into my old school and I never have to sit A Level exams again.
I still do not regret any of the last two years, because I've made some amazing friends, learnt so much about myself and discovered many new things. I don't know where I'm going to be in 5 years time but I'm really looking forward to it!
Last Tuesday, I was reminded that I had left Sixth Form over two months ago. This got me thinking and I have wondered how time has managed to go so quickly. It seems as though I've only been finished for a few weeks.
Even this time last month I was in a foreign country, enjoying the hot sunshine and relaxed atmosphere.
Being reminded of when I left has got me thinking about the time that I spent there. For the past two years of my life Sixth Form has literally taken over and has dominated all aspects of my life. So to suddenly not have to go to school or do any kind of coursework was really strange. For the first couple of weeks it didn't feel as though I had actually finished and it took me a while to realise that I could now do whatever I wanted to, without having the guilt of knowing that there was school work to do.
Throughout my time at Sixth Form both myself and others would moan about how rubbish it was. We would moan about how we hated our subjects or one of the new rules which were introduced, but looking back at it now, it wasn't really that bad. I mean, all in all I really enjoyed the two years I spend there. There were a lot of good things that happened to us whilst we were there and I think it is important to remember these when reflecting on the past two years.
At the start of Year 13, the second year of Sixth Form, we were told that half of us would be moving from the other campus so that all Sixth Formers would be located in one campus. Initially we were sad and angry that we would have to be moved, as we had been in the same school for six years and wasn't up for the move for our final year. However once we were there it wasn't that bad. We got to meet people from the other half of our year and we've made new friends, which we wouldn't have done otherwise. Although we still had to cross-site for some of our lessons, this was alright by the end of the year because many of us got our drivers licenses and cars.
Sixth Form was also a chance to study subjects which you had never studied before. In my case I took photography which was a totally new subject because I decided not to take it in GCSE. The past two years have been a challenge for everybody, as it has always been a careful balance between school work and having a social life and it is totally different from what we were all used to.
One of the highlights for me is being involved with the iPads which were introduced to our school. Firstly I was part of a team which tested them out before they were distributed to the rest of Sixth Form and then during my final year I became an iPad ambassador, which focused on helping out staff and students if they had any problems with the devices.
As part of this me and five of my friends went to the Hilton hotel at Stansted to present to over 100 associates and headteachers of the AET about the iPads and how they have influenced our learning, which was an amazing opportunity and experience for all of us. From putting a presentation together to delivering it, we put so much effort into the day and we were all lucky enough to be able to keep our devices at the end of the conference, which was so unexpected.
Our Sixth Form also got involved in many charity events such as Sports Relief and Children In Need, which were memorable days. As well as raising money, the whole Sixth Form came together to organise stalls and events which made the days enjoyable for everyone. We even dressed up for these events, for the first Children In Need the theme was fictional characters, for Sports Relief we dressed up as footballers and for the second Children In Need we had a pyjama theme. Soaking our head of Sixth Form with wet sponges is one of my memories from Children In Need, as well as watching a massive group of people dancing to Gangnam Style on the school field.
On our last official day at Sixth Form we had our leaver's assembly. I think this was one of the days when we realised that it was nearly over and it actually started to feel real. After giving out comical awards and watching a video put together by myself and my friend we were meant to have a BBQ. Typically though, it was raining so we had an impromptu one in our cafe, which was still great fun.
Moving away from the events that happened at school, there were also quite a few parties in during the two years which we attended, particularly in our last year. There are also many highlights from these, with each one being memorable for one reason or another.
It's hard to believe that I've been at one school for seven years. It feels like 7 minutes and it's scary how quickly it has gone by.
Now as we look forward to results day, it will be the day that determines what happens next. With many of us going off to University or Apprenticeships next year, it is inevitable that we won't see or speak to the people we would at Sixth Form as much. Some of us will be the other side of the country, or occupied by a full time job and I think that this will really sink in on results day. I hope that I do continue to speak to as many people as possible, but there are some people now that I haven't seen or heard from since our last day or Prom, but that's part of life. Although I moaned about Sixth Form, next year I am going to miss it, but it will be the people that I will miss even more.
