It’s hard to believe that in a short amount of time, I will be graduating from high school. It feels just like yesterday I walked into this school as a freshman. Time goes by, as they say. As I reflect on the years past, I see the moments of which I’m proud, moments I regret, and moments I don’t know what to make of yet. I know I still have much to learn in the years to come, which is both exciting and frightening at the same time.

I’m unbearably nervous about graduation, perhaps irrationally nervous, but nervous none the less. I’m not certain what will happen in my future, but I know that at some point I will figure something out. Until then, I now have to focus on wrapping up my school year, which shouldn’t be hard and won’t be long either. I also have graduation parties to attend, which will serve as goodbyes to people I’ve known for years, some longer than others. It’s a bittersweet feeling knowing my peers have accomplished so much but also knowing we all will travel different paths and live our own lives. I take comfort in knowing there will always be opportunities to meet new people in the future.

Younger students, in high school, middle school, or elementary, will all have to go through the same stage at one moment in their life. Most of them probably don’t think of it that often or at all, but every student – kindergarten through eleventh grade – is preparing for it, whether they realize it or not. The best advice I can give to younger students is things are not as bad as you think they are. There will be hurdles and annoyances in high school, but you are more than capable of overcoming those problems. Don’t let anything or anyone stand in your way, don’t ever give up.

Moving on from high school and transitioning to the real world will be a challenge, but not an impossibility. I don’t know what will happen in my future, but that only gives me something to look forward to.

“Rise up like the sun; labor till the work is done.”