宋庆龄学校国际部2025届毕业生分享

蝉鸣十二年

Twelve Summers of Cicadas

Elizabeth Li

宋庆龄学校国际部2025届毕业生

录取院校

University of California Los Angeles

加州大学洛杉矶分校

University of California Santa Barbara

加州大学圣塔芭芭拉分校

University of British Columbia (B+MM)

不列颠哥伦比亚大学(本硕连读管理项目)

McGill University

麦吉尔大学

University of Toronto

多伦多大学

English

说起我和宋校的初见，应该是在十二年前的一个下午，彼时夏日的暖风伴随着声声蝉鸣拂过我脸颊，掠过A楼二楼教室的窗户。那时的我并不能预见这里所发生的一切将会给我带来怎样的惊喜和感悟。

在一个又一个平凡的早晨，穿过图书馆前的草坪，我每天都卡在打铃前极限测量着从校门口跑到F楼的时长——目前算下来是七分零十秒。宋校于我而言最大的魅力就在于它的多元化，不论今天的心情有多么糟糕，明天，又或许只需要两节课，我一定会接触到新的血液、新的思想、新的活动，所以在学校的每一天总是有些令人期待的事。

某天放学后路过食堂

在加拿大上学时

碰上的一场大雪

喜欢在阳光下合照的四人组

小学毕业后我曾转学去加拿大读过一年书，虽然也能适应新学校的学习氛围，但也正是这短暂的分别让我更加珍视宋校。我喜欢这里轻松包容的氛围、个性鲜明的老师和我那些张扬独特的朋友们。初中时，我还懵懂无知也没有清晰的目标，但幸而我有一群志同道合的朋友拉着我去参加各式各样的比赛，如USAD、IOLC、BPA、SPARTAN等。这些勇敢（也很随机）的尝试和宝贵的经验在申请季中无疑是神助，帮助我更快地了解自己和选择真正热爱的专业。

躺在草坪上的雕塑

各类比赛照片

线性代数班上的“精英”们

虽未曾言明，但我将好几节AP课的老师奉为偶像，是崇拜的人，也是自己想成为的人。而有这样优秀的偶像指引着我，我逐渐建立起也更加坚定自己的判断、选择和观念。算起来，我在宋校遇到了真正的人生导师。

作为校园大使接待来宾

在申请季跟朋友聊天的时候，我曾问她：“你觉得我有什么成长吗？”最记忆犹新的一个答案是她说，“从前的你永远都是万事万物皆可的状态，但现在却对许多事情都形成了鲜明的观点。”

作为数学周活动主持人

九年级的我第一次接触了AP课，也“荣幸”地考出了人生最低的分数。但一经尝试AP，就彻底沦陷。在AP艺术史课上，我听到了百年前蒙克无声的呐喊，哥特式教堂神性的呼唤和两块石雕最纯真的呢喃。在AP英语文学课上，我看到了二十世纪初纸醉金迷的美利坚,也看到了极具讽刺意味的凄凉爱情骗局，从而心情百转千回。我很庆幸自己获得了文学和艺术鉴赏能力，能在千姿百态的世界中从文学作品里找到直击心灵的共鸣，也能在书画中找到坚实可靠的避风港。这一切都很感谢学校开设了这么多门AP课。

在科学周展示化学小实验

同时，AP课让我养成了自学习惯。做作业前有意识的复习和灵活的周计划帮助我在报了多门AP的情况下还能留出许多娱乐时间，从而保持始终如一的高情绪和专注。然而，随着每天四点二十的下课铃，人潮汹涌奔向校门，只在校门口留下身后一道道狭长的影子和半挂在天边燃烧的落日。

旅途中不同的《我》

我享受孤独、贪恋落单时自由自在的思想，但我也害怕孤单，总是渴望有同伴陪我一起去新的环境。幸运地，我始终都有相识的同行者，而她们一次次无条件的支持，哪怕是一句“去吧，你可以的”，也为我积攒了磅礴的力量，让我逐渐打破了名为害羞和社恐的蚕蛹，勇敢地追随内心真实的想法。

作为优秀毕业生代表上台发言

当申请季迫近，我也曾经挣扎过要不要请留学机构，但最后还是决定相信学校的升学指导，相信Mr. Josh。梦校offer的来临也证明了我的选择是正确的。回顾整个焦灼的申请季，与其说它是一座火焰山，不如说它是最好的成年礼物。经历过这一轮火烤，我才真正学会了自我反省，学会了挖掘自己的优缺点，学会了为自己的未来做决定。写文书不是为了迎合学校，而是为了学会如何用最有效率的方法向别人介绍自己。依我粗见，文书一定要不断打磨到自己可以很骄傲地拿出去给别人欣赏的程度，感动到自己的文字才能打动别人。

独特的庆生方式：一起写文书吧！

一直以来我都相信：哪怕结果不理想，只要能获得新认知或者收获，这份努力就是值得的，所以一直心态良好。

不同境遇下的《我》

我从来都不觉得自己是天赋型选手，也不是多努力的卷王，只是比较能忍；忍着只去看耗时短的娱乐项目，忍着不任性，忍着不晚睡只早起，忍着不去做耗时长的兴趣爱好。当然，忍过了非常时期还是需要痛痛快快地玩一场来恢复元气。

放学后的黄金时刻

回顾这十二年，母校隽永的记忆埋藏在校园的每一寸——光影斑驳的林荫道间，阳光依旧刺眼，树叶也还是按老样子婆娑地摇曳，沙沙声里夹着说不尽的故事。

感谢每一个相遇，也期待未来。

Twelve years ago, on a golden afternoon, I met SCLS for the first time. Cicadas hummed in the warm air as a summer breeze drifted through the windows of Classroom 201, brushing against my face. I had no idea then how deeply this place—its people, its rhythms, its quiet magic—would shape me.

Every morning, I raced across the library lawn, timing my sprint from the school gates to Building F with desperate precision. Seven minutes and ten seconds—just enough to beat the bell. What I loved most about SCLS was how effortlessly it surprised me. No matter how dull a day seemed, tomorrow—or maybe just the next class—would bring some new spark: a conversation, an idea, an invitation to something unexpected.

Passing the cafeteria

A snowstorm in Canada

With my beloved friends

After sixth grade, I spent a year in Canada. I adjusted fine, but that distance only made me appreciate SCLS more when I returned. Here, the air felt light. Teachers didn't just lecture—they had personalities, opinions, quirks. My friends were loud and unapologetically themselves. In middle school, I floated through days without much direction, but my friends pulled me into competitions—USAD, BPA, IOLC, SPARTAN—on little more than a whim. Those random leaps turned out to be gifts: by application season, they'd helped me figure out who I was and what I actually cared about.

Selfie with paper sculptures

Me in competitions

Our elite linear algebra class

I never said it out loud, but some of my AP teachers became quiet role models—the kind of people I wanted to be. Watching them, I learned to trust my own instincts, to make decisions without second-guessing. In hindsight, SCLS gave me my first real mentors.

During applications, I asked a friend, "Have I changed at all?" She said, "You used to just go with the flow. Now you actually have opinions."

Leading campus tours as the school ambassador

During applications, I asked a friend, "Have I changed at all?" She said, "You used to just go with the flow. Now you actually have opinions."

Planning for pi-day as the host

I took my first AP class in ninth grade and earned the lowest grade of my life. But something clicked. In AP Art History, I learned to hear the scream in Munch's silence, the prayer in Gothic churches, the conversation between two carved stones. In AP English Literature, I unveiled the dazzling excesses of Jazz Age America and also the devastating emotional fraudulences beneath romantic facades, sending my thoughts spiraling through contradictory emotions. Those classes taught me how to read the world—to find comfort in words, meaning in brushstrokes.

Flame test demo on science week

More importantly, AP classes taught me how to learn independently. Through deliberate pre-study sessions and adaptive weekly planning, I managed to balance multiple AP courses while still carving out time for myself—whether to unwind or pursue other passions. This discipline didn't just help me survive the workload; it kept me energized and focused, even during the most demanding weeks.

At 4:20 p.m., the dismissal bell would ring, and students poured toward the gates, their shadows stretching long behind them as the sun hung low and molten in the sky.

Moments of me traveling

I like being alone—the way my thoughts stretch out in quiet. But I hate feeling lonely. I always want someone beside me in new places. Luckily, I've always had friends who'd nudge me forward with a "Just go for it." Their faith, small as it seemed, gave me the nerve to push past my shyness.

Valedictorian Speech

When college applications loomed, I debated on whether to hire a consultant. But in the end, I decided to trust Mr. Josh, our college counselor. Getting into my dream school proved it was the right call. Looking back at the grueling college application season, I've come to see it not as a trial by fire, but as the ultimate coming-of-age gift. Those scorching months forged something in me—the ability to reflect deeply, to confront my strengths and flaws unflinchingly, and most importantly, to own every decision about my future. Here's what I believe: A personal statement isn't done until you can hand it to a stranger with genuine pride. The words that move you first are the only ones capable of moving others.

Senior birthday gift: essay-writing party

I've always believed that effort pays off, even when the outcome doesn't. If you walk away wiser, you didn't waste your time.

Me under different mindsets

I never considered myself naturally gifted, nor was I one of those extremely hardworking overachievers. I simply had more endurance—enduring by only allowing myself short entertainment breaks, enduring by not acting on impulses, enduring by going to bed early and waking up early instead of staying up late, enduring by avoiding time-consuming hobbies. Of course, after getting through critical periods, I still needed to indulge in proper fun to recharge.

A golden hour after the last bell

Twelve years later, SCLS still lives in details: sunlight filtering through the trees, the same old leaves rustling the same old stories.

I'm grateful for every bit of it. And I'm ready for what's next.