An interview done with a new freshman at Rocky, Caiya Easterling, advises students her age to just be themselves.
“Do what makes you happy.” Caiya Easterling, an incoming freshman at Rocky Mountain High School says when asked: what is your advice for anyone your age. She says that a lot of people are really insecure about doing what makes them happy, they’re scared. She wants them to know that it’s alright to be yourself. Do something for yourself. It’s important.
"Do what makes you happy." - Caiya Easterling
Caiya says that for her, something that makes her happy is exploring. Trying new things, seeing what she can do. She’s really excited for high school because of this, there’s so many opportunities that she’s ready to take. She says that she picked up this trait from moving around so much as a child. “You learn who stick with” and how to be independent, which she says has made her who she is today. She wants people to learn to be strong in who they are and to accept that.
Caiya says that her mom taught her that. For Caiya, her mom is someone influential in her life because for a long time it’s been just her and her mom. “So, we’ve been friends, but also, she’s been a mom at the same time” Caiya says. According to her, her mom has such an influence because she’s “strong, she pushes through. Even when she’s feeling really down, she always finds a way to put it on the bright side. She’s really optimistic that way.” To Caiya, that’s incredibly important.
With the world moving at such a fast pace, Caiya is eager to explore. She wants to live in a big city someday because she loves the bustle, and the “vibe” that it gives off. She’s so excited to get to be on her own, be her own person and get to make her own choices. And she says that the promise of something new excites her. She’s excited to meet new people and see new places.
She finds herself to be a very independent person. “I can do things by myself and not need someone with me,” she says. Because of this she considers her worst quality to be “shutting people out.” For her, she feels as though sometimes someone can say only a few things before she shuts them out, preferring to keep to herself.
To her, the worst thing someone can do is just be unnecessarily rude. She wants them to do things for themselves, and be their own person, but that doesn’t mean stepping all over each other for no reason. It just hurts more people than it helps. When people are unnecessarily rude it makes it even harder for the people on the receiving end to be themselves.
Caiya is clearly ready to explore her options; she seems so excited to try everything new. She knows how to be herself, and she knows what makes her happy. She hopes that everyone else out there will find that too, because to her, that’s the most important thing a young teen at this age can do.