I know how you feel... you can't wait to get out of high school. You can't wait to finally go off to college, meet new people and especially start living on your own. Your senior year is winding down, you only have a month or two left. You're finishing up your final tests, quizzes, and soon you'll start to say your goodbyes.
Before you know it you'll be saying goodbye to the people you grew up with. You'll be saying goodbye to your favorite teachers. You'll be cleaning out your locker, taking down the decorations that made it your own. You'll walk down the main hallway one last time, looking back and leaving all of it behind you. After all, you're moving on. Your new chapter starts when you walk out those doors.
I can remember senior year so clearly. All throughout high school you strived to be a senior, everyone always wanted to be the top dog. Seniors ran the school like it was there own. By the time you were a senior, teachers felt like more of your friends than an authority, I think that was the best part of being a senior. But the last day of senior year really hit it home for me. That was the day where our class picture was taken, our first time seeing each other in our cap and gowns. That was the day when I cleaned out my locker, taking down all of the memorabilia that seemed to accumulate throughout the year. That was the day I walked through those double doors and I started preparing for my new beginning. I know how you feel, you feel so free and nothing can stop you. As a senior you feel like you run the school and have little responsibility. The last months of high school are what you'll remember the most. Those last few months are absolutely bittersweet. Soon you'll be looking back on your senior year through your class video. You'll be seeing yourself and all of your friends at the Friday night football games, class ring night, and your senior class trip. Everything from this point on is yours, you're finally free.
Graduation won't feel like it actually happened. It won't hit you when you're getting dressed into your robe. It won't hit you when you put on your sport medals or your honor's society cords. Believe it or not, it won't even hit you when you walk across that stage to receive your diploma. It won't hit you when you're moving into your new dorm room, or even when you're out making new lifelong friends. I don't think it every really hits you. I think you just get used to not being in the same place everyday of your life. You just move on, slowly but surely.
Try to make everyday of what is left of your senior year count because those memories are what you're going to think of about high school. Appreciate the little things high school still has to offer you. Enjoy seeing your friends at school, because soon you'll be seeing them every couple of months. Enjoy being able to have the strength to wake up at 7 a.m. everyday, because waking up for an 8 a.m. class in college is impossible. All of this may sound depressing, but it's actually only the beginning. College is where you'll start to develop lifelong friendships. College is where you can actually start growing as a person and being to branch out. College is a time to focus on yourself and do what makes YOU happy.
I know you can't wait to get out of high school, I know you just want to get up, leave and never come back, but take your time. Take your time walking down the halls; memorize everything you see. Create memories with your friends that will last a lifetime. Have the time of your life at prom. Make some crazy memories that you'll tell your kids about one day. Enjoy every single moment high school has to offer you. Believe it or not, high school is actually a blessing. It shapes you as a person, it teaches you lifelong lessons, it builds you up to finally be able to enter the real world.
To the graduating class of 2016, this one's for you. I wish you all nothing but the very best. I hope college is everything you ever dreamed of. I hope you follow all of your dreams, and never let anyone tell you you're crazy for your major. I wish you all the absolute happiness in the world. Chase your dreams and never look back. College is great, I hope you all discover that soon.
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." - Eleanor Roosevelt
