Dear High School Seniors,

You did it! Right now, you’ve only got about two months left in your high school career, and I’m sure you are dying to graduate. You can’t wait to get away from the early mornings, all the drama, and the town you’ve spent your last eighteen years in. You can’t wait to move on.

Before you rush out of high school, take a minute to sit back and take it all in. Everything you have been able to call familiar for the past twelve years or so is all about to change. The people you have talked to every day will soon be spread across the country at various colleges. The places you have visited every day will soon be an occasional hangout spot when you’re home on break. Everything is going to be different.

In just a few short months, you’re going to wake up in a dorm room, with someone you barely know sleeping in the other bed. You won’t be able to walk downstairs to the kitchen and get a homemade breakfast from your mom. The little things you have become so accustomed to will no longer be available.

I am not saying these things to scare you. Believe me, college is one of the best experiences of your life. I am simply trying to tell you that you should not rush out of high school.

You may be saying to yourself, “I hated high school. I can’t wait for college.” How do I know this? I was you. I could not wait to leave. I spent my entire senior year counting down the days until graduation because all I wanted was to finally get out of that place and move on with my life.

I didn’t think about all of the things I would be missing. I would never again spend my mornings hanging out with friends before homeroom. I would never again get to sit with my friends and our favorite teachers, eating lunch together. I would never again get to make an announcement as Student Council Vice President. These little things meant so much to me, and I never realized how much I was going to miss them.

So, while you’ve got one foot in high school, and the other in college, take a minute to enjoy these last few months. Take some time to focus solely on finishing high school, and making this time the best it can be. As much as you want to get out of high school, and go to college, don’t rush it. You will never again in your life experience something like these past four years. You have the rest of your life to worry about your future, so right now, do yourself a favor, and be a high school senior. Have fun with your friends while you’re all still together. Go to all of your favorite places while you still have the chance to live in this town.

Make the best of your high school career because I guarantee you are going to miss it. Nothing will ever be like this again.

Sincerely,

A College Student