Conor O’Neill
Honors English
5/5/09

Dear Freshman:

I have had a lot of good times here at the high school. You will too if you know what to do and how to handle yourself. First things is first, join the football and lacrosse team. I probably had some of the best times of my life at team dinners and other team functions with the guys who I got to know through sports. I met some of my best friends through these teams; I still hang out with those guys on Saturday nights and do…high school things. You might not know what I mean by high school things, and I wont tell you, because you have to make up your own mind about what those things are going to be. If you want to go out drinking on a Friday with your friends, that is completely your choice, however, people here at AHS respect your decisions and will never directly try and pressure you into things.
Seriously though, football and lacrosse are the way to go. My life did not revolve around those activities; I was never really all that good though I made the varsity teams for both. I’ll give you a kind of field guide to make it through these things. First thing is first, football; your biggest enemy and your biggest ally will be Coach Hirsh. He is a good guy at heart but he is an intense hard-ass and wont take crap from anyone. All you have to do is show up everyday (because he will make you run if you don’t, even if your sick), and work hard. If he notices you working hard, it will at least keep him off your back, even if you don’t play. If you’re a lineman, your all set because Coach Wesolowski (Weso) is the nicest guy ever, he just expects your best effort. Lacrosse is an entirely different matter, however. Coach roach held almost no authority over the team because of how little we all respected him and how hard we tried to undermine his authority. This was a terrible idea because we toppled the chain of command and our team is horrible as a result. If he is still there when you make it up to varsity, don’t make the mistake we did, respect the guy because he is your coach and deserves it. The Assn. Coaches White and Cronin are really cool. They will defiantly try to play you because Coach Roach doesn’t, and will be your friends. But when it comes game time, you’re the player and they are the coaches, listen to and respect them.
Now I don’t want to leave this letter with useless things about my sports life at the high school, or lack thereof. Although sports where a big part of my identity and helped me to find myself, there was a lot more to High School. The reason why the concept of a place before college was invented is because it offers a chance to find out who you are. That is the most important thing you will ever do at AHS, and don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. You might fail a test or two along the way, but it is all for a higher purpose. Just remember to do your best ad live life to the fullest everyday. Sometimes you will encounter things that will test you to the very core of your being, but in the immortal words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt-“When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on”.

Sincerely,
Conor O’Neill

P.S. Be careful when you’re thinking about being friends with those cross-country kids. They seem nice but when you really get to know them, you might be slightly frightened by what you find.