Free Choice Blog – To my AP class

Dear AP class of 2016-2017,

I cannot believe that another semester has come and gone, time has certainly gone by so quickly to the point where I felt like I was just starting class yesterday.  But I have to say: I am absolutely stunned, amazed, and humbled that I have survived three years of AP. I had started AP English at Grade 10 under the persistence of my Grade 9 teacher with an absolute love for writing, and I know that I have grown as a friend, a writer, a reader, and a student. But I feel that the greatest things I bore witness to was not only my own self-growth, but the growth of the individuals that I surrounded myself with.

It just takes my breath away.

To think that I was surrounded by this generation’s finest minds and that I was able to grow to be the prolific writer that I am today.

And all I have to say is Thank you.

Thank you for helping me grow. Thank you for showing me that there is beauty in the darkness. Thank you for showing me that there is no shame in pursuing your passion, that it is alright to go against the norms of society. Thank you for showing me that I do not have to stifle my voice, that my opinions, my emotions, my words were worth so much. And thank you for being my solace, my confidants. Thank you so, so much.

I know that I may have my ups and downs, moments where I act too out of control, too cranky, but you all were there for me and I cannot display enough gratitude for not dismissing my feelings and my worries like it was nothing. I have met so many amazing people in this class, I have made so many friends, and that fills my heart with deep happiness.

I have great understanding of the darkness within me, within all of us. For me; however, this class taught me to not destroy that darkness, but to embrace it. Embrace that there are going to be things wrong with me and to live with that. I am the type of person that has the tendency to lose connections quite easily, but I have a feeling deep inside that I am going to return to our class for all the wonderful memories that I made.

I am simply happy to have met you all and what you have done for me. I appreciate each and every one of you and I sincerely hope that you all are happy, safe, filled with peace in the present and in the future. Because you all deserve it. No matter what happens, I know that I will never forget all you unforgettable people and I will always love you guys unconditionally. That being said: If you see me around Calgary ( if I’m still here for Uni ), don’t be afraid to say hello! Chances are, I would return it. I love you adorable AP students so, so much. I only want you all to be happy, and to feel content with your life. If you feel like nobody in the world loves you or that you are alone in this miserable place, you’re wrong. As long as I live and as long as I able to write, I will always love you guys.

Believe in who you are and what you stand for. You are absolutely, undoubtedly worth it all.

We all live in a society where words are brushed aside, and passion is quelled, where grey individuals live a monotonous life of: sleep, eat, work, home, repeat. Do not be like that. You all have great potential to change the world and I firmly believe that you all will. With whatever you guys decide to do in your future, I know that you will find success. Like I have said earlier, believe.

Just believe.


To my family group – Nilave, Amika, Ibukun, and Genevieve,

I love you all so much. I am so, so proud of you because you grew to be wonderful people and prolific writers. Since I am leaving this class, this is a tearful goodbye to people whom I have grown to cherish and love. I know that we have our moments where we all fight and resent each other, but I will care for you all regardless.

Nilave, you have grown so much, my friend. I am humbled by the amount of progress and determination that you have shown. You are deserving to be in this class because you offer invaluable insights that I have not thought of before. Not only that, you are funny, caring, and so nice. You have this beautiful childishness within you that you must cherish in a world that frowns upon immaturity. Please keep being yourself and my words of inspiration: Chin up. I wish you best in your future endeavors.

Amika, I am sad to say that we have not gotten to know each other well, but from the interactions that we had and from your writing, I know that you are a devastatingly intelligent individual. I know that because you have a tendency to whisper the answer to yourself and not bothering to raise your hand to answer the question. Don’t be afraid to answer the question, my dear! Everyone here deserves to hear your beautiful voice and your insight. But upon the topic of writing I will only say this, you will improve. It is not fair to yourself that you compare yourself to individuals who have been in AP far longer. Believe in yourself and you will be the great writer that you are meant to be. I am so honoured to have you in my family group and I wish you best in your future endeavors.

Ibukun, like I have said before, I am stunned and proud at the amazing progress that you have shown in your writing and whenever you talk aloud in class. I have a feeling that you will do so many more great things in this class. You are such a kind, wonderful individual that never fails to bring a smile on my face because you are so special and unique to this class. Please do not change who you are; for in my eyes, you are perfect. Thank you for being so amazingly friendly and please continue to write. From what I’ve seen, you already have such a great grasp of writing and I know that you can go upwards from here. My words of inspiration: Kindness will help you go far. Keep being yourself and I wish you best in your future endeavors.

Genevieve, my Greek Myth partner-in-crime, I am so glad that I had this chance to get to know you because you are so sardonic, cynical, and sarcastic that it makes me laugh. Like Nilave, I was so happy to see the progression of your writing and how you grew into such a prolific writer. But what I am so glad for is that you have no fear in stating the hard truth and connecting with other people on issues that we have today. Please speak up more in class because you have such great insight and I would hate for people to not bear witness to your genius. Despite what you think, I think you are absolutely perfect the way you are. My words of inspiration: Love yourself. I know that this may seem hard, but you are worth it. Do not change who you are and I wish you best in your future endeavors.


As I read over this letter with tears shining in my eyes and a lump in my throat. I have to repeat what I have said earlier. I am so honoured and humbled to be in this class, to listen to all our socratics and it fills me with sorrow, knowing that I won’t be able to hear it anymore. But despite my remorse, I have a feeling that the Grade 12s are leaving the class in good hands. That the legacy of my grade and the grade before us won’t diminish in the slightest. I know that you will make us all proud.

And in return, we will try to make you all proud.

With much love,

Bryna Anne Nacomel

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4 thoughts on “Free Choice Blog – To my AP class

  1. Dearest Bryna,

    I understand you, girl. I am feeling those exact feelings of separation anxiety, sadness, and excitement for our “children’s” futures. We made it and all said and done, all I really have left to say is thank you. Thank you for being the shining light of hope and laughter in our classroom. Thank you for sharing your beautiful insights with us and giving our worlds some of your Bryna sass.

    I don’t really have the words to give you feedback on this blog, since it comes from such a pure place in your heart. But I would like commend you for spilling your heart out so articulately and honestly- as always. There is order in the madness and girl do you ever own it. This blog is so raw and real and this is your most beautiful voice.

    Keeping ruling the world beautiful!

    Love,
    Malika

  2. Dear Bryna,
    You’ve nearly got me crying over here! Your letter was just so sweet and honest. I am sure that is how most of the AP class if feeling right now, you very accurately articulated the mixed emotions many are feeling into a lovely letter.

    I am so grateful that you have been brought into my life, you have made an astoundingly positive impact. I shan’t forget the kind, bubbly, nearly-a-midget (this doesn’t define you as a person, remember that) Bryna Anne Nacomel. Even the name alone rings of the beauty and complexity of your spirit.

    I don’t mean to make it sound as if you are dying, I know you are not dying, I am simply going to miss you.

    I don’t know that I have any grows so I shall share my “words of wisdom,” as well. As I frequently say, please remember that change can be a fantastic thing! As daunting, painful, and at times lonely of an experience it is no amount of foresight can prepare you for the immutable wonders the future holds. Worse comes to worse, you shall learn!

    I will work my hardest to make you proud as you, along with the other grade 12s, have made me proud already!

    Thanks again Bryna for a lovely semester, a lovely piece of literature (along with your many others), and for being an example of unadulterated confidence. It is weird to know that no one really is madly in love with themselves at all times but you just bring about such a wonderful air or indifference toward the negativity of others, it is beautiful! You exude joy and have frequently acted as the light in my dark days, I hope that I will be able to brighten your, or whomever’s day may need some brightening, darker days.

    Hugs,
    Ibukun

    P.S. Don’t party too hard Bryna! <3

  3. Dear Bryna,

    I’m very happy that I was able to be in the same class as an individual such as yourself (I was lucky enough to have experienced this privilege for the two years that I have been in AP LA). Firstly, I want to offer my gratitude to you for always being willing to offer your thoughts and ideas on various novels, poems, or exam prompts that we’ve studied; they’ve helped me out when I was unable to understand, and by being exposed to your most thoughtful ideas, I was able to improve as a thinker. Your ability to articulate your ideas to an entire class of AP students is something that I appreciate, for it provides me with different perceptions on the literature that we study in class. Furthermore, you have a gift in writing poetry, as you always offer your emulations to the class during most (if not all) poetry seminars; it’s as if you can understand the main idea of a poem with a simple glance, and then proceed to write an elegant emulation as if doing so was a simple thing (for me, it’s really not).

    I’m actually very sad to see you leave, for I will miss your laughter. Your laughter gives light to the classroom, for then, even if I myself am feeling tired/anxious about any problems I may be experiencing, hearing you laugh allows me to calm down. For myself, your laughter has become associated with a feeling of serenity. Your laughter contributes to the feeling of belonging that I feel in AP LA, and I’m honestly very sad that I won’t be able to experience that laughter next year (please be sure to visit!). You also have great talent in making people laugh, either through your actions or your witty comments (sometimes a mixture of both), and as a result, I’m able to laugh and smile myself. Especially smile.

    It’s been truly wonderful knowing you and being able to be in the presence of your personality. I find it incredibly hard to believe that by the time I’m in AP LA again next year, you’ll have graduated and moved past high school; I honestly don’t know how it’ll be the same! You’re an extremely talented individual, so I know that you will continue to excel wherever you go, carrying your exuberant character with you. I do have a hope that you’ll continue to post poetry on your blog, for I wish to continue to learn from your poetry. Thank you for being someone that I’ve been able to learn from, and for being someone whom I can look up towards for guidance. You’ve really helped make AP LA a home for me, and I don’t believe I’ll ever be able to repay what you’ve given me. Please continue to be the individual you are, the individual that has made me laugh and smile countless times, and whose profound ideas provide inspiration and assistance to me when I’m lost in literature.

    Thank you for all you’ve done Bryna!

    Sincerely yours with the greatest of gratitude,

    Rehman

  4. Dear Bryna,
    It’s been a privilege to get to know you this year, and I really am going to miss having you in my class (although I’m assuming you’re going to be in my Spanish class next semester, so I suppose it’s not totally over). It’s been so much fun sharing our love for literature and Greek mythology over the months, and I wish that we could spend more time together in the AP environment, but I suppose that all good things must come to an end.
    I loved the energy that you brought into the classroom, and will miss it in the years to come, and I hope that you share this positivity with others in the future. Even when I first came into the AP class (and I still distinctly remember our first meeting) I admired your confidence and how comfortable you were with yourself, and to this day, I still admire you for this. And since you gave me words of advice, I feel obligated to advise you myself, and personally, I would advise you to keep being yourself. That sort of self-confidence you have is rare to find, and I hope that you hold onto it.
    – Genevieve

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