2024. The year that I never quite expected to come. After counting down for 12 years, I’ve reached the final weeks of my senior year.

From the moment I turn the tassel, I will officially be a member of the club of people who can say, “High school goes by so fast.”

As cliché as it sounds, and despite how much I didn’t believe my parents when they told me this over and over, the statement is all too true.

Senior year has been one of the best and busiest, from choosing a college I’m more than excited to attend to planning a graduation party and celebrating my final year with senior nights and banquets.

However, along with all of this comes seas of nostalgia and the want for it all to slow down.

I’m 18 years old, an adult in most states, yet I don’t feel that old. It feels like just yesterday that I was in elementary school, rebelliously staying up during naptime and watching Polar Express while cutting out paper snowflakes during the holidays.

I remember walking the halls as a freshman, looking up to the seniors and wondering how that could ever be me– club leaders, college commits, state competition competitors.

Now that I have these things I aspired to have, I would love to take a trip back to my 5th grade Montessori class, 7th grade science class, 10th grade English class, or 11th grade Spanish class.

I realize now the importance of living in the moment and enjoying where you are at the given time in your life.

Each year has had its ups and downs, the laughs so hard you think you’ve developed abs and the class projects so hard you wish you hadn’t taken the course.

Throughout it all, there has been a comradery between me, my friends, and my classmates. These relationships are what have always mattered most to me.

It feels unfathomable that these vivid and wonderful memories lie so deep in my past and that every last I live through is truly a last.

From the last football game, to the last dance, to the last soccer season, I have tried to cherish every moment.

In order to do so, I make my best effort to say yes to everything I can. With such limited time in my hometown with friends that I have attended school with for so many years, I say yes to any opportunity offered to me– from games to concerts to morning coffee runs.

I also make sure to take pictures with my friends and of the things that I do, as memories and physical reminders to look back on.

One of my favorite ways to take pictures is with my digital camera. Many people that have these bring them to games, dances, and other events. It’s a great way to involve everyone and get fun, vintage-style photos.

Fighting the senioritis isn’t easy, but I do my best to come to school each and every day because these classes with these people are something that I won’t ever get to come back to.

During senior year, it is important to commemorate and remember how far you have come, in any way you can.

My spring semester calendar has been colorfully painted with senior night, honors night, graduation parties, the Grannys, a middle school graduation walk, and more.

These celebrations are all contributing to making my final year even more memorable.

As I flip to this next chapter in my life, I feel fear of the unknown, but also an incredible feeling of opportunity and adventure.

I’m looking forward to meeting new people, a more free school schedule than ever before, traveling the world and exploring other clubs and activities offered to me.

Further, I have enjoyed watching my classmates earn scholarships and plan out their futures. I’ve witnessed their hard work, had late nights and cries over hard tests alongside them, and now get to see it all pay off.

Some of these people have been my closest friends for over 10 years, and it is exciting to watch their lives unfold and know that they will all achieve great things in the years to come.

High school gave me the opportunity to meet my best friends, find my passions, and discover who I am. I could not be more grateful for my time at MN and my last 12 years of school.

The turning of my tassel will signify the end of an era of laughter, memories, and love but also the beginning of a wonderful new one, of growth and adventure. Adventure I do not yet know.