Natalie Bonilla, Senior:

What do you like about school?

“I like my classes and my teachers. I like that I get to see my friends every day. My favorite class right now is APES with Ms. Jackson. She is a great teacher. She is fun and I learn easily, she just makes everything better. That’s my favorite part of the day.”

What has been the happiest moment of your life?

“When my twin siblings were born. That’s the happiest I have felt in a while. When I was little, I never realized how much beauty babies bring to the world. I was about eleven years old when they were born, it was a big moment for me. I was excited for having twin siblings and I think that’s really cool.”

What has been the saddest moment of your life?

“ I am a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed at the age of 4. I went through chemotherapy and everything. Now I am fine, but last year I had to get another surgery. That affected me a lot. I was in a lot of pain for a while. Going through that again caught the memories and fears that I had when I was little. I have a lot of pictures of it and it’s just something that has always been with me.”

How did your perspective of life change since that happened?

“It is something out of the blue because I didn’t expect it. It was something that wasn’t really probable of happening again. I didn’t really worry about it and then all of a sudden it came back and it makes you think that every day is something you need to look forward to. You never know when something can actually go wrong, and it made me see every day as an opportunity I get to be a better person .”

How did you push through it as a junior in high school?

“I missed an entire month of school because I was really sick from the surgery and I had a lot of complications. It was hard but I had a lot of good friends that came to my house and brought me homework. I talked to the teachers, I even came to school one day to talk to everyone about what was happening. Venice was a really supportive school for me to push me through and help me get through everything. I even applied for the study abroad program during that time when I was at home feeling really sick but I said ‘I have to do this now, because I might not get a chance later on.’

What advice would you give to other students?

“ Just keep going, you only get one life. Live it to the fullest. You never know when something can happen. If you get an opportunity to do something,  take advantage of it, and help the community as well.”