For four years, graduation was an idea that seniors could just push off. Now, it’s less than a month away, and plans for the future are closer than ever. From worrying about due dates to looking for jobs, everything feels like it’s moving too quickly. People are already talking about college, but not everyone has everything figured out.
Many students will be seeing faces they’ve grown up with at graduation and it’s difficult to not look back. Sharing schedules on orientation day, taking a picture for your library card, getting rides to school, everything. Even small things like hanging out with friends, sitting at a lunch table you claimed at the beginning of the year, walking to class together, and having a place to belong were the best things we could ask for. “Everyone’s just a little closer to each other this year simply because we’re all graduating, and it’s really nice to just relish that with everyone in our own way,” said Senior Jacqueline Terucha. There are so many moments that seemed small at the time, but now that it’s all ending, it’s going to be hard to let go of.
In school, everything came naturally. Knowing when and where you were supposed to be, memorizing names and building numbers, even getting to know your teachers and making friends. After graduation, that won’t always be the case. Whether you’re going to college or not, there’s no one to guide you through everything. Nobody is going to tell you where to be or what to do, you’re supposed to have that figured out already. Terucha said, “It’s scary because I don’t know what’s coming next or if I’m prepared enough, but it also feels a bit exhilarating because now that I’m ‘old enough’, I can do more things and have more freedom, which I’ve been looking forward to for a long time.”
It’s the end of high school, but there’s still more things to look forward to. Your first job, your first day of college, even moving out. Keep in touch with friends, take more pictures, and stay in the present. “Just prepare yourself well, have fun, and everything will be fine,” said Terucha. Make every moment count, because even if friendships don’t last forever, the memories you make together will.
