This is supposed to be the time of your life. Everyone will tell you that this next semester will go by faster than the speed of light. They'll remind you to not blink. They swear that this season of your life will come and go far too quickly. Everyone will yell at you to go to every event from JV mathlete competitions to the varsity baseball state championship. This semester is supposed to be the time of your life. It's supposed to be a time of joy, celebration, and feeling like you have finally reached the finish line of a 12-year long sprint. This is it.

It's okay for this to best time yet. It's amazing for this season of life to be exciting. Be happy about enjoying time with your hometown friends before it has to come to an end. Spend time with your family before you leave. Take time to appreciate your full-size bed and showering barefoot. This semester is nostalgic for many. There are prom and sports and the firsts of so many lasts. Celebrate this season.

However, it is also okay if this isn't it. It's perfectly fine to not be able to wait to leave. High school isn't the best and most amazing time for everyone. This isn't everyone's prime, and not everyone peaks. For many, this period of life is an uncomfortable feeling of 'barely there', 'almost gone', of 'just about happy'. This is an empty feeling where many feel like they're about to be uprooted and scared to grow elsewhere. Many can't wait to get out. It's a period of loss as you lose what you have always identified as your sense of home. This time can be sad or frustrating. Despite everyone forcing feelings down your throat, it's okay for you to be honest about how you're feeling.

Whether this is the best or worst time of your life, enjoy where you're at. At this place, certain people and environments will be exactly what you need. They will support you the way you should be. However, very soon, you'll be in a very different place in life and may need new things. This adaptation is unique and welcomed, but don't let go of what should be important now. Appreciate the people who make these last few months enjoyable or bearable. Stop complaining about running out of shampoo before your mom goes to the store, because soon, you'll have to buy it yourself. Shower barefoot like you;l never have to put on shoes to hike down the hall to the community shower. Spread out in your space before you live in a room the size of a shoebox. Take advantage of this season of lasts.

For me, graduation could not come soon enough. High school was a very challenging time in my life where I endured some of the worsts experiences of my life. But in anger towards my circumstances, I felt I forgot to enjoy the people who made my time at Etowah high a lot less terrible- the friends who let me blow up their phones with long rants and lengthy complaints, the teachers who poured into me at a time I felt mostly empty, and the family that helped me pack my bags but secretly wanted me to stay. I took a lot of this period of my life for granted. I forgot to enjoy a bed that I don't have to climb onto a desk to get into and food that isn't mass produced. I didn't fully appreciate the comfort I found at KSU while dual enrolling or the times I spent getting to know so many strangers better.

Here's to your last semester. Don't take it for granted but know however you're feeling is valid. Congratulations Class of 2019 on the lasts before a whole new year of firsts.