June 12, 2023 by Darren Pasek (‘25)
With what feels like a whirlwind of a year coming to an end, everything that has happened is a little foggy. This summary aims to jog your memory about some of the most memorable moments of this school year that you may have forgotten.
The year began as the first covid restriction free school year since 2019, so global and school-specific events were reflective of these newfound liberties. The summer of 2022 can be characterized by the war in Ukraine, the overturning of Roe v. Wade, and the January 6th hearings, among other things. The political hotbed surrounding former president Trump as well as the violence in Ukraine provoked some fear for many of us in America.
As the fall began, we immediately saw a major event take place with the death of Queen Elizabeth II, who had the longest reign of any English monarch in history. Her majesty’s death also served as a reminder to the world that the monarchy still exists, which begged the question of how long it will continue. Closer to home, we kicked off the first fall sports season with spectators since 2019. As the seasons progressed, we began to remember how much fun the school sports games were. The boys’ soccer team played in a memorable sectionals match where they lost a hard-fought game versus Shaker.
With the brisk air of October and November, the antisemitic tweets from Kanye became ever more widespread. Speaking of Twitter, Elon Musk officially purchased the platform on October 27th, 2022. This event led to an uncertain platform for midterm elections campaigning. Said elections resulted in a not-so-red sweep. Locally, the blue streaks’ football team made the playoffs, and the girls field hockey team beat Shen, both for the first time in years. The girls’ cross country team also won states and nationals, again.
Many of us spent our December watching the World Cup in class. Messi finally secured his last missing crown by winning with his home country, Argentina. The cold weather brought by the shorter days was eased by a curiously warm January. In our schools, more school resource officers were allowed to occupy our elementary buildings. Nationally, Kevin McCarthy was appointed as the first new speaker of the house in over two decades. Around the same time, Tyre Nichols was murdered in Memphis, Tennessee, by five on-duty police officers.
Winter wound down with more persistent cold(ish) weather that made us all hopeful for and reminiscent of warmer days. With the Latin program being cut and the controversial Snowball dance, February was a month of SSHS drama. When we officially turned the corner to springlike living, the incredible performance of Mamma Mia! took place and garnered a vast array of award nominations. There was also a moment of technological history with the release of ChatGPT. And tumult continued as the country felt a moment of economic uncertainty when large banks like Silicon Valley Bank went under.
More recently, we have been surrounded by the buzz of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour. On a similar note, there has been much anticipation regarding the commencement of the approaching SPAC season with Jazz Festival and Dead and Company as notable June events. Additionally, May saw the Board of Education elections along with student council and class officer elections come and go. Several Blue Streak teams had successful sectional performances to cap off an athletically strong year for Saratoga. With the school year winding down, we can only try our best to ease the stress of finals week and deadlines by reflecting on all we have accomplished with each other thus far.