Well, Ladies and Gentleman, former classmates, high school friends, my school family, it's our time. I don't think it has hit the bulk of us yet that we truly are seniors. We are the "big kids" who are about to be thrown into a world full of adult responsibilities. There is something so comforting about home...it's where we grew up — learning right from wrong. So many memories lie within this town, that we all seem to have endless complaints about. Although, most of all, it's where we met the friends that turned into our family, whom we grew up with. In just two months from now, we will be dressed in cap and gown (most likely accompanied by an uneasy feeling in our stomach), surrounded by our friends and family and facing our class's valedictorian as she/he gives us the speech that will make us all want to reverse time and do things differently. Despite all the mixed emotions about leaving high school and home, I can't wait to see what my future has in store for me. Needless to say, I'm ecstatic to start this new chapter in my life. So here's to the confused, happy, nervous, sad, excited, etc. incoming college freshman.
1. Everything is your last, enjoy it while you still can.
Football games, homecoming, spirit week, school events, prom, this is your last time going through everything. More likely than not, as your four years of high school flew by, you took these things for granted. Now, enjoy them as much as you can because you will miss them when you leave. The "last" of these things is always rather bittersweet.
2. The "May 1st Deadline".
You spent all of your first semester preparing the most prestigious application to send out to your dream schools, the local schools your parents forced you to apply to, and the schools that should be a breeze getting into. As one would expect, waiting to hear back from schools is the hardest part. With every day that passes, the anxious feeling in your chest grows stronger. Oh, and the not-so-occasional "Pleased to announce that I will be attending __________ this fall'" Facebook posts practically lights a fire under your ass. Of course, if you have the ideal college-search experience and are accepted into your top school, it allows the process to run smoothly. Although, what about the ones who got a rejection letter from the school they were set on? What about the students who weren't set on any school? To sum it all up, that "May 1st deadline" is constantly lingering over everyone's heads, but at the end of the day, everything will work out.
3. Senior Festivities!!!
The second half, well, I wouldn't give the school that much credit...more like the last quarter of senior year, is full of fun. Senior trip, Prom (and the after-prom of course!), yearbook signing, the endless graduation parties that your calendar is currently being bombarded with. These all are once in a lifetime experiences and our last chance to make the best out of our time with our class. Do it while you still can, even though I know it's a lot easier to sit back and pretend that none of this is happening.
4. New school, new people, new me.
We have all been caught in situations that have made us want to escape our current life, go somewhere where no one knew us, and start fresh. Well ladies and gents, now is your time to do exactly that. You will be entering a school where people only know your name, not your story. I'm sure you have heard that many people change in college and you can't blame them. If they weren't happy with themselves, then college is the perfect opportunity to change and get on the right path.
5. What will I do without my friends?
Yes, we are all going to be lost puppies in the beginning of this new journey. We will no longer have our friends who we grew up doing everything with right by our side. Good news, the school of your choice will be full of lost puppies and you will all be in the same boat. Regarding your friends from high school, if they truly are as amazing as you are making them out to be, then you have nothing to worry about. The people who are meant to stay in your life will. The people who drift, well, they must not have been true friends in the first place. The scary part is seeing who will stay and who will go.
6. What about my high school relationship?!
Oh and here we are, we have reached the dreaded long awaited part in any high school relationship. We have all heard the horror stories about bad break ups come college or that long distance relationship that didn't work out. This basically comes down to seven words: what is meant to be will be. Stop stressing over something that is ultimately out of your control. If you stay together, it was meant to be and, well, if you don't, you two are simply meant to go your separate ways.
7. Am I going to get stuck with a wacko roommate?
Well, I hope the whole roommate situation works out for you but there is no way around this one. I guess it's more just trial and error, all I can say is choose wisely. May the odds be ever in your favor.
8. Wait...I'm on my own now?
Yes, college screams freedom and responsibilities all in one. College means no more home cooked meals and no more mom and dad doing your laundry and cleaning up after you. You are on your own now and, for many, it's going to be a rude awakening. College also means parties whenever, no mom and dad on top of you about your school work, going out and staying out late at your leisure. This whole experience is both scary and exciting. Make good decisions because not only is college supposed to be the best time of your life, but it's also the most pivotal time for your future.
9. That familiar feeling...
Well, just as you got nervous butterflies entering middle and high school, you will get them all over again as you enter college. You went from being the "big kids" to the underclassmen who can barely maneuver their way around campus. Frightening, I know. Soon enough, we will all be meeting and making new lifelong friends at college and will be having the time of our lives, but first we must experience that scary, dreaded, transition, that "I'm a newbie" phase.
10. How the heck am I supposed to choose what I want to do for the rest of my life???
It is OK to not know what major to choose and what you want to spend the rest of your life doing. That is why there is a such thing as going into college as an "undecided" major. With time, everything will become clearer to you. I know it's scary and seems like a crazy decision to be making but everything will work out; it always does.
11.How hard will college truly be?
Your high school has told you these past four years that everything they do is to prepare you for college. Well, how hard will college be compared to high school? Only time will tell. I guess it depends on everyone's situation, the college they go to, and the high school they attended. All I can say for certain is that college won't be the time for texting your friends in math class, daydreaming in English class, and doodling in history. Remember, your future and career will depend on this, it's time to get serious.
So, Ladies and Gentleman, former classmates, high school friends, my school family, I truly wish you all the best as you partake on this amazing journey and next chapter of your life. Many of you I won't see again after graduation season is over, but i hope the majority of you I still will. We will all go down our own slightly different paths but never forget where your home is at. Well this is it, we are in the homestretch. Lets lets make the best of it while we still can and live everyday like it's our last. Oh, and how could I forget? Congratulations on making it through so far, the hardest four years of your life, you really are the best!
