My Senior Photo Story
WHITNEY HEARD
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1: WHO AM I?
CHAPTER 2: BEFORE I WAS THERE WERE…
CHAPTER 3: SUDDENLY I BECAME ME…
CHAPTER 4; SCHOOL BELLS
CHAPTER 5: MORE SCHOOL BELLS
CHAPTER 6: I GREW UP HERE!
CHAPTER 7: GROWING PAINS, CRUSHES, AND BEING A GOOD SPORT.
CHAPTER 8: MIDDLE SCHOOL
CHAPTER 9: I WISH I COULD SEE ___ AGAIN!
CHAPTER 10: BESIDES MY PARENTS, THERE WAS…
CHAPTER 11: HIGH SCHOOL
CHAPTER 12: AT LAST, I’M A SENIOR!
CHAPTER 13: LETTER TO MRS. MACK
EPILOGUE
Hi! My name is Whitney.
I am a seventeen year
old High School senior
in the small town of
Ellsworth Michigan. My
only goal in life is to be
happy. In my opinion
there are three things I
will need to do and
maintain in order to
accomplish this. Firstly I
must establish myself
SAFELY in the financial
world. Secondly
eventually I am going to
marry the love of my life.
And most importantly I
will keep my faith in
God. To me this is a full
proof plan and luckily
I’ve already gotten quite
a head start in all three
requirements.
Chapter 1
Who am I?
Before I was there were…
Adam&Eve
Grandpa
Joe&Grandma
Aunt Sue
&
Mom
Uncle Jim
&
Uncle Jeff
Grandpa
Jerry&Mimi
Aunt Laurie
Dad
Uncle Matt
Chapter 3:
Suddenly I became me..
I was born during the summer of ‘95, in the
Petoskey Burns Center. My mom got to watch
the Independence day fireworks show from
her hospital room window that night. The
actual name choosing for little me was a bit of
a struggle. My mom wanted to name me
Shelby, but my grandma was quite adamant
that doing so would be a very bad decision.
Obviously Grandma won that battle. I’m not
sure what my first few years were like, but in
all of my pictures I seemed pretty happy. My
first word was mommy, and I’m assuming my
first step was forward. As far as losing my first
tooth I do remember that as soon as I
discovered those suckers could come out I
started yanking away at the rest. When I was
just under two years old my little sister
Hannah was born. She isn’t exactly the light of
my life but she sure makes things more
interesting.
Chapter 4:
School Bells
Ohhh gosh kindergarten
through third grade were
definitely some of my best
days. In those years I attended
the small Christian school in
Ellsworth called Ebenezer. It
was there I met my childhood
best friend Tara. Initially I
extremely disliked her but I
soon got over that and pretty
much spent every day for the
next nine years of my life with
her. Every day at Ebenezer
was a little adventure. There
were woods surrounding the
perimeter of the school that
we were allowed to roam in
our free time. A normal recess
consisted of fort building, hot
tubbing, and sasquatch
hunting.
Me.
Tara
Chapter 5: More School Bells
Best team EVER.
Unfortunately during third grade Tara
decided to transfer to Ellsworth Elementary
school due to the rising cost of her dental
work. I was sad for a while but after enough
nagging over the summer my parents let me
switch too. Luckily the quarter mile
between us hadn’t changed a thing. During
those pre-middle school years in my mom’s
desperate attempt to get rid of my chub, I
started playing basketball and softball. I
hated it at the time, and would actually hide
those little papers adults would send home
with us advertising those week long sports
camps. Naturally thanks to my dear friend’s
(Kari and Tara) big fat mouths my mother
would find out anyways and force me to go,
but looking back I'm very thankful for her
constant insistence that I continue. Sports
have made me form relationships I
wouldn’t have otherwise and given me a
confidence in life that all kids need.
Chapter 6: I Grew Up Here!
As I said before, I live in Ellsworth
and have for my entire life. However
due to changing family and financial
situations I have lived in four houses
in this area. But if I could sum up
every single room I’ve ever had in
one word, it’d be purple. My favorite
house is the one I lived in for the first
fourteen years of my life (we officially
moved out on my birthday). It was a
gorgeous yellow farm house on
Marion center road. Behind it there
was a small creek that Tara and I
would spend hours catching crayfish
with our bare hands in. On the right I
have included an old picture that the
previous owners had taken.
Chapter 7: Growing Pains, Crushes,
and Being a Good Sport.
MY FIRST REAL CRUSH WAS NICK STOREY. I REMEMBER
THINKING HE WAS THE HOTTEST THING TO EVER WALK INTO
THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. AT THE TIME HE HAD THESE
BLEACHED HIGH LIGHTS THAT I NOW REALIZE WERE
PROBABLY NOT ALL THAT COOL. EVENTUALLY WE LEARNED
TO HATE EACH OTHER FOR NO PARTICULAR REASON.
IT WAS ABOUT AT THAT AGE MY MOM DECIDED I WAS TOO
OLD TO NEED A BABY SITTER ANY LONGER. IT SUCKED. I
HAD THE BEST BABYSITTER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. HER
NAME WAS MISS LARAY AND SHE MADE FANTASTIC PB&J’S. I
AM CONVINCED THAT HER STRAWBERRY JELLY WAS THE
REASON FOR MY SLIGHT CHILDHOOD OBESITY, BUT I DIDN’T
MIND.
I CONTINUED SPORTS AND ACTUALLY PICKED UP A NEW ONE,
VOLLEYBALL. AND SURPRISE, I WAS ACTUALLY GOOD AT IT!
Unfortunately in Ellsworth
being in the middle school
meant you were once again
the little kid as we had to
move to the high school
building. Having to change
classes all the time was a
pain in the butt! I lost my
schedule on the first day and
ended up going wherever
Kari and Tara went.
Bad quality junior high track photo
For the first time we had a
REAL science class. At the
time it seemed so difficult. I
was so naïve back then. I
had no idea what chemistry
would bring.
Relationships with boys got
to that awkward stage. One
day they were your best
friend and the next day “so
and so” wanted to hold your
hand. It was a horrible and
confusing time.
Chapter 8: Middle School
Chapter 9: I Wish I Could See ___ Again!
If there was one person I could see again it’d be Mr.
McClellan. He was the most predominant father figure
during my high school years. I don’t know if he realized it
but it was that way with a lot of us kids at the school. He
was always there as a shoulder to lean on or simply a
listening ear. It always seemed like he could read our
emotions better than we could and knew whether it was a
joke we needed or simply some alone time and a bible
verse. Because of him I made my decision to enlist, I
learned how I deserved to be treated as a young woman,
and most importantly he taught me to keep my faith in
God . A person like him can never be replaced.
Chapter 10: Besides My Parents, There Was…
Remember that guy I was talking
about in chapter seven? The little
brat who I used to hate? Well
now I just happen to be
completely in love with him, and
the best part is… He loves me
back. We’ve been together since
tenth grade and we’ve definitely
had our ups and downs. However
I have never learned so much
about myself and life in general
than I have during the moments
I’ve had with this guy. There is so
much I could say here… But to
sum it all up I think I’ll just say
that he is my absolute favorite
person in the world and I feel so
incredibly blessed to have him in
my life.
Chapter 11:
High School
There’s not much else I
can say about high school
except that I FREAKING
LOVED IT. People always
complain about wanting
to grow up but for me
that has never been the
case. Friends during nine
months of the year and
money for the other three
was the perfect life for
me. On top of that I had
no financial
responsibilities and all
the mistakes I made
could be played off as me
just being a teenager. Life
was good.
Chapter 12: At Last, I’m A Senior!
Senior year has been a complete whirl wind. I honestly feel like I
should still be a sophomore. Going through all of those “lasts”
such as football games, pep rallies, and school pictures hasn’t
really fully hit me up until this moment. Are our parents
seriously expecting us to be adults now?? We’re still kids for
heavens sake! And what about you teachers? Who the heck
decided that I’m fully grown now??? Cause I’d like to give that
guy a kick in the face. To be honest future wise I am prepared
for this, but mentally and emotionally I’m not so sure I can do
this. I mean I still sleep with a night light on.. In the end I
know I have no choice, and I know I have a lot of people
surrounding me with their support, but secretly I’m still
hoping Mrs. Spearing will pull me aside in the hall Monday to
tell me I need to retake twelfth grade (fingers crossed).
Chapter 13: Letter to Mrs. Mack
DEAREST MRS. MACK,
THE EFFORT PUT INTO THE MEMORY BOOK WAS DEFINITELY WORTH
WHILE. I’M NOT SO SURE I “ENJOYED” IT PER SE, BUT IT DEFINITELY MADE
ME APPRECIATE MY LIFE SO FAR. FUTURE SENIORS NEED TO DO THIS
BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE THROUGH DOING THIS I HAVE GOTTEN SOME CLOSUR E
ON THE SUBJECT OF THE EMINENT DOOM OF MY CHILDHOOD.
HAMLET COMPLETELY SUCKED. AND I WOULD CAPITALIZE AND
BOLD THE “S” WORD IF IT WASN’T ALREADY. IT’S HARD TO BE HAPPY WH ILE
READING THAT BOOK. I THINK INTRODUCING A MID SUMMER NIGHT’S
DREAM MIGHT BE INTERESTING. MAYBE EVEN PUT ON A PLAY AS ONE OF
THE ASSIGNMENTS?
AS FAR AS MY FUTURE GOES I ENLISTED IN THE USAF BACK IN
FEBRUARY SO RIGHT NOW I’M JUST PLAYING THE WAITING GAME. I’M
HOPING TO RECEIVE MY OFFICIAL ORDERS SOMETIME BEFORE JULY. I
THINK WHILE I’M THERE READING AND WRITING WILL BECOME MUCH MORE
IMPORTANT TO ME DURING THE MONTHS OF BASIC TRAINING AS IT WILL B E
MY ONLY MEANS OF COMMUNICATION WITH MY LOVED ONES.
I REALLY HOPE TO SEE YOU AROUND THIS SUMMER. YOU ARE
SOMEONE I WILL DEFINITELY MISS. IT WAS NICE TO HAVE A TEACHER TH AT
SEEMED MORE LIKE A PERSON. AS A GIRL RELATING TO YOU WAS EASY. S O
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!
LOVE, WHITNEY
Epilogue:
If I Could Live My Life Over Again…
In the end I wouldn’t change a
thing about my life. I love the
people who surround me and
in a way I am proud of the
person I’ve become. If
anything was different I’m not
so sure who I’d be or who I’d
love. The best part about
being at this point in my life is
I can be absolutely whoever I
want to be. And well.. That’s
exactly where I want to be.