An End or a Beginning?
Wow. Just like that, four years are over in the blink of an eye. It's crazy to think that I'm never going to be able to walk back onto RUHS' campus as a student in High School. In less than 6 days I will be an alumnus of a place I have been more committed to than I have been of anything. WHAT?!?! It's almost like going through a break-up: you may not have the people or the place to return to, but you have all the memories. I couldn't have chosen a better place to have gone through all the crazy experiences that High School has to offer. To say the least, it was NOTHING like what any of the High School Musical movies depicted, but in some ways it was tremendously better. I cultivated many more lessons here that go beyond chrome books and paper. From the life experiences that I learned through the people I encountered to the lifelong friends I have had the pleasure of creating, I wouldn't have been able to write my story any better than how it turned out.
It’s almost like going through a break-up: you may not have the people or the place to return to, but you have all the memories.
I am tremendously excited to see how we turn out beyond High School. A friend of mine (a certain Sean Reynolds) has been drafted by the Miami Marlins; not one, but two of the top students from my class will be attending Cornell University in the Fall; another classmate will be married before she receives her diploma; we all began this journey the same way but now it's up to us to determine how the rest of the journey will play out. Redondo Union's class of 2016 is bursting with amazing, unique people that make this world so incredibly profound.
Looking back, people would say, "enjoy High School, it goes by fast," and boy, were they right. In the dreaded heat wave that cursed us Southern Californians last September, the seconds appeared to merely creep by. Simultaneously, the last few moments spent studying for the Physics final, forgotten about till the last moment, felt like no time at all. Similarly, in the difficult moments, time stood still, while looking back at the past 10 months, time was not a factor at all. The only moments that are frozen in time are the moments that caused imploding laughter and joy to all those involved; the back-to-back championships our teams have clinched; the anticipations of spirit days and potlucks; the moment when a student realizes how truly passionate a teacher is for his/her students. Those moments are inspiring. Hold on to them.
So, while this chapter may be coming to a close, it's not necessarily an ending. Sure Graduation may be the tip of a childhood, or to some a hard reality check, but it is also a beginning. A new opportunity to try something new, gain independence, gain a new appreciation for what you have. It's all a matter of perspective. But most importantly, try not to spend every day wishing for the end of High School to end because one day, the beginning of the rest of your life might just pop up on you unexpectedly and scare the crap out of you.
