Well it certainly has been awhile. Since the last time we spoke I’ve graduated high school, officially an alumna of a high school that has been a part of my family for over 20 plus years.
My final assignment in my english class was to write and present a commencement speech. What I made sure to emphasize in my speech was how lucky I felt to attend my high school due to the fact that no 2 people were the same. The town my high school is in has been named number 1 in the most diverse towns in NY. For some, diversity may not mean a whole lot. But for me, it means everything because I’ve gotten to learn so much from those who surround me, even those I’m not close with. The beautiful thing about my now former high school is it was a place where hard conversations were had because they were, and are, a reality for many of the children that attend. I said in my commencement speech that we should be so grateful to attend a school where no 2 people are the same because sadly it's not as common as we are made out to believe.
To be honest, I dreaded my last day of high school, and not because it was coming to an end but because I knew I would cry. I spent the last day writing in numerous yearbooks, the most I’ve actually hand-written during the whole school year. What loomed over my head, was that we wouldn't all (most likely) be present in the same room together again. I spent the last 13 years with some of the kids whom I spent my final moments with as a high school student. I have friends that for the 1st time in my educational career, I will no longer sit in a classroom with. I knew that even those that I may have never made a connection with, but walked by in the halls, I may never see again. It’s that never part that makes it all so scary.
While I walked out of my high school for the last time with tear stained cheeks, I also left with an enormous sense of pride. Pride in myself. If you were to tell a 12 year old me, about to enter middle school, how the next 6 years would turn out, I wouldn't have believed it, including the pandemic. I, as a person, grew so much during high school, one of my biggest takeaways was to lead with compassion. You never know the full story of what one might be going through. I spent many days in high school just trying to get through the day, without breaking down, and I tried my hardest to not let anyone see me crack. High school was far from easy but it taught me that it was nothing I couldn't handle.
There was one moment during my graduation ceremony that I became emotional. The audience had realized that every single student had been named and given their “diploma.” And then they erupted into a standing ovation. I won't lie, it makes me a bit emotional to even think about it. While I still can't exactly pinpoint why it makes me so emotional, I assume it's because for me, and I know many of my friends and fellow students, had so many moments of doubts throughout our last 10 months of high school. To be honest, many of us entered our last year of high school not knowing if we would get a graduation. But as I sit and write this I think why it made me so emotional was because of our perseverance. I said in my english final, “ Nothing we've gotten this year has been handed to us with ease, we've put on our bravest faces even if you couldn't see it. We never backed down from the challenges we've been presented with, not only in school but in our everyday lives. For many, school can be an escape, but this year it almost felt like a reminder of everything we have lost. Yet we took our misfortunes and turned them into something to laugh or smile about. There's so much we could have chosen to dwell on but didn't. The class of 2021 will go down in history for our resilience, determination, and perseverance.”
My family and close family friends got to watch me graduate from my house, as I was only allowed to have 4 people attend my graduation. The day was so crazy, it felt like a blur. But, I never got the chance to thank everyone, so I'm gonna do it now even though many may never see this. To anyone who has put a smile on my face, made me laugh, or encouraged me along the way, I can't thank you enough. While the journey was not easy, it was because of my family and friends who made me laugh or smile that helped me get through the hard days, and I am forever grateful and truly will never be able to express the amount of love and thanks I have for those who stuck by my side, thank you.
“My darling, some things have to end, so that others can simply begin.”
Kommentare