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Monday, May 5, 2014

“Graduation” by Rachel S



            What does graduation mean exactly? For most of us when we think of graduation, we think of finally ending high school, but more importantly, going on to what’s next. It is the end of one chapter, and the beginning of another, much longer one. What happens next as we step into the real world, will shape us and define who we are. It becomes both a very confusing, yet exciting time in our lives.

            Graduation, although not to a few, is terrifying. Many of you may not fully realize the implications of transcending into adults until its right in your face. And it is horrifying. You will be nervous, scared, and almost completely alone. You won’t be given guidance like before, or the charity and doubt that comes with being kids. At times it will feel like the world is crushing down on you but remember, always, that you are a mountain, you cannot be moved. Your roots spread far and you will stand against time.

            Graduation means letting go of your past and setting ahead into your future. In these last few days you will have a choice of letting free any resentment or hate that you may have experienced. Forgiving can be a very mature, respectable, and above all healthy thing to do, especially when you face new and challenging uncertainties. Forgive the people who have wronged you, bullied you, laughed or whatever else. Leave the immature, the negative and the hateful behind, let that anchor go and never let it weigh you down again. Forgive, but do not forget. Remember what has happened, always, and grow from it.

            Graduation means bringing waves and tides of both positive and negative feelings, one of the more negative being regret. Have you ever lain sleepless one night, going over all the silly or embarrassing things you’ve done? It seems to me that this feeling escalates as I grow closer to this ending date and as I look back at my four years. However, all that simply means is that you’ve obviously learned from your mistakes, you’ve grown, you’ve adapted, and you recognize your wrongs, meaning that you’ve become a much better person.

            Graduation, means saying goodbye. You and I, and everyone else will miss something from high school, whether if it was the great friends, the events, anything. As we are handed that sweet, sweet diploma and dawn our gowns we will end our time here, together, but also leave, together. We will (mostly) go our separate ways, develop into our own, separate beings and that will be wonderful.

            Lastly, graduation is, and probably most importantly, about finally being released. No longer will we be in grade school; our parents soon cannot give us a curfew (although it’s probably smart to set on anyways, you know, for college and whatnot.)  We’re like flowers finally being able to bloom; an entire garden in spring. Finally being able to really set our print into society, to truly become an individual. It’ll be an amazing experience, and I’m more than exhilarated to begin.

39 comments:

  1. Rachel, I really enjoyed this piece - especially the way you individually addressed the various implications of graduation. I have no idea what you plan on studying in college, but I definitely think you would make a great writer!! Nice job.
    -Christina Tapia

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  2. This article was truly inspirational! It gave me hope and excitement for college! I can totally connect with this article since I am really nervous and completely scared for college because none of my close friends will be there. However, from this article I have learned that we need to mature and learn to be independent. I really like how you said to forgive and let free of any resentment and hate. I feel that this is a really important and mature move that everyone should do since it shows that you are now a better person. We should learn from our mistakes and learn from our experiences. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this article and you did a great job!

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  3. Graduation is a very special time and part of your life and i can see that it is very important to you. this event is you becoming and adult and the start of something beautiful.

    -Abigail Rich

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  4. Rachel, I agree fully with just about everything you wrote. Graduation can mean a lot of things, whether I means not having anyone to lean on the way we're used to, or moving on to new experiences. But it's important to take all the knowledge we've gained in our lives and use it to better our future I know I've definitely stayed up all night going over all the mistakes I've made and wishing I could go back to fix them. But you've reminded me that I should let go of all that, and only focus on the positive, so thank you. Great job! :)

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  5. Rachel you are so right!! Its insane to think that although this part of our life is ending a new beginning is also around the corner. I completely agree with you in that its time to reminise in how far we have come and grow from that and let that drive us to continuing on with our future. I loved that you called us a "garden in spring" to represent how we are finally able to blossom and share with the world all that we have to offer. Great job!!!
    Lucia G.

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  6. This piece was pure perfection. Since I'm a freshman, I constantly hear "I can't wait until graduation" from my fellow peers. In their mind, it's for all of it to be finally over. But in my mind, it's just the next step in life. I want to persue my aspirations and achieve happiness and success. I wish you the best of luck on to your graduation!
    -Leia S. period 6

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  7. Rachel, this was such an amazing piece! I am actually having all these weird thoughts and mixed feelings since graduation is coming up. You are definitely right about how there is much more meaning to graduation. We are all going to face new challenges and have different experiences. It can be scary, but it is kind of exciting as well. It is time to show the world what amazing things we can do.

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  8. I am also one of those who will think of graduation as an end of high school but I agree with the idea of it as being just a new beginning. I really liked how you explained the many meanings of graduation. Great Job.

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  9. I love this story like it is so true honestly I never thought of graduation like that. you gave great excellent detail keep up the good work!
    laura tormos
    period 2

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  10. Reading your blog made me realize that graduating high school isn't about all the mistakes and failures you made in four years, it's about the lasting impression you made for yourself and others to help you in life. I really liked your analogy of describing how we are just blooming into beautiful flowers.It made me think about how I have "bloomed" into my own beautiful flower :)

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  11. Wow, Rachel! You wrote such a beautiful piece about not only graduation, but also our future. I am excited to see what the future holds for all of us as well. :) Thank you for sharing a valuable message about forgiveness and moving forward. Great job!

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  12. Ahh another graduation entry. You can tell what matters to us seniors at this point! Haha. I really enjoyed the structure of your musings. How you really contemplated everything that graduation is for us and all it's implications. And I found myself nodding as I read cause it's true! Graduation is more than leaving but being released and regretting and growing and so much more. It's a lot to take in, and we only have seven more days to do it. Wow. Crazy how time flies...

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  13. I like this piece, even though I am a freshmen I like to see others feed back on what to prepare for life after highschool and all the great advice. Great job!

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  14. Yes! Graduation at last! We as seniors have all worked so hard for this day! After this year's summer vacation, we will all be busy doing something--whether it's working, studying, or joining the military. We will all say goodbye to many of our friends and be put in a more "adult-like" environment where we will be exposed to a new set of environment, people, and ideas. We will continue to learn from different experiences and be more mature and developed. It may seem like a sad event leaving the people we are familiar with, but it is the way life is. Good job!

    -Hsing Chang

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  15. I really like this piece! It's crazy to think that we're graduating and moving on in the next two weeks. It's going to be odd being in a different environment and seeing fresh new faces everyday, but I think most of us are ready for this next chapter. Good job!

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  16. Wow! That was so great! I loved how you described it. Im really at a loss for words that was really good. And so true. Even though im only a freshman i will definetly take your words to heart.
    -Alexandra Urena

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  17. I started reading this and I was thinking, "Wow this totally not like all the other graduation posts; it really shows what's gonna happen after we graduate and step foot into society and into the real world-- or what really should happen," until you know... I got the ending and then I got really really sad. I began to think of all the familiar faces that I've been seeing for the past 4 years, or more in fact, and just to think that it'll no longer be the norm of my life in a matter of less than a week is so so crazy. And sometimes, err well most of the time, I deeply wish there were more hours in a day.. so I can spend time with people I should have spent more time with, or spend more time with people I don't know at all, or spend time with people I never ever would have thought of spending time with. I really wish I cherished all those moments more than I did in the process. Well.. you can't change things, but I can't help but feel more blessed and humbled to see all the people I did see grow up as a beautiful person and into their own individual. And it's even more of a humbling experience to have grown with them. I know that no matter where we are, not matter what we do, and no matter where we go, we will all go places and grow into something huge that will have a great impact on the world we live in today and on the world that we'll live in, in the future. Your piece was just super amazing; it really gets the readers thinking and it gets their emotions all worked up through pathos. Good job, Rachel! :)

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  18. Wow, this was really an eyeopener about our future after high school. It makes me realize that we're not in that middle stage of not being kids and not yet adults. We were just teenagers. But now, we really are adults. Everyone going off their separate ways, actually worrying about their futures now. It made me realize how important we should cherish these last few days of "the best years of our lives". Good job!

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  19. This reflection was something that I truly can connect with. The ideas that you describe are things that we have all been thinking (with the upcoming graduation), but all sort of afraid to believe as true. We are growing up and must think towards the future. Your piece really got me thinking about what I really want for my future and how I should not try to rush through these last six days of high school, even though we are all looking forward to summer. This was an amazing reflection, good job.

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  20. Amazing reflection about our remaining time in high school. This really makes you think about all the upcoming big choices everyone has at your school and what paths they have to choose from, great story.
    -Adrian Andres

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  21. This is a great job! it is an eye opener for people slowly thinking about graduating. I can't wait to see what everyone is going to do next, how different life is going to be in the next few months. Good Job!

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  22. This piece can relate to all of us. Graduation is just a few more days away, and it's going to be one of the biggest steps into the real world for all of us. This blog really makes you ponder upon how close we are to stepping into the real world.
    -Yamen Mubarka

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  23. I love it. This absolutely amazing. I can't believe that so many people see graduation in different lights, but in the end, high school is actually ending and we are closing a chapter and beginning a new. You portrayed each light fantastically and it kind of creates a nostalgic feeling.. Beautiful job!!
    Taylor Robles

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  24. This was something all seniors could relate to and with graduation a week away, when I read it, everything hit me. How unprepared I really am for the new chapter in my life and how big the next step I am taking actually is. This was a great piece and something that I believe made all of us seniors stop and look at the new chapter we are about to face more seriously. Good Job!

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  25. Oh Rachel!!! Your writing was spectacular. I truly appreciate your organized style since it made your analyzing of the meaning of graduation and the other feelings and situations entailed with it quite effective and coherent. I feel that this is a time to reflect and ponder, not dwell and regret since my goodness most of us have a lot ahead and a lot still left to learn. Your metaphors were quite relatable and I just want to thank you for this candid and well-written piece.

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  26. This piece made me realize how close graduation is as well as the real world. Your piece was real eye opener to seniors and a little emotional as well. Great job !

    -Erin Napoleon

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  27. This is such a great piece to read before the big day, May 21! I forget sometimes what it means to graduate. Reading your piece reminded me of all the pros and cons that result from graduating high school. It’s been a long four years, but like what you said, we are starting a much longer chapter of our lives. This piece had great diction and structure. I noticed the transition between the paragraphs that led to liberation from high school. Again, great work!

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  28. All these graduation posts are such a reminder of how surreal graduation is, and that its what all seniors are talking about. I love your unique approach showing the various meanings behind graduation itself that many fail to recognize. My favorite part though was your motivational quote saying "Your roots spread far and you will stand against time." I'll always try to remember that! Goodjob Rachel!! ☺

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  29. I think this piece functions as a mirror for every person who reads it, senior or not. The way that you explained everything was well done because while we were able to see your opinions on graduation, you wrote I'm such a way that allowed everyone to relate
    to the piece and think about how each new idea applied to themselves, especially the idea of having things to let go. I completely agree with all of the emotions that graduation brings and the truth of what life will be like when we leave. Your writing was clear and concise and because you wrote in a more relaxed way it was easy to feel as though I was speaking directly to you. From organization and support to content this was a really great piece. You really captured how most, if not all, seniors feel about graduation!

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  30. I like how you gave different examples of what graduation means. To each and everyone it means something different and I like how you addressed that. Your quote was also a nice touch.

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  31. This piece made me realize more on what graduation was. At first it i was also thinking the same but it is even more clear to me now. I was expecting something totally different when i had read the title of this piece. I was totally expecting something sad or on the topic of that. I also like how the piece made me think about my favorite thing which is that "there is always a better future."

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  32. You know, in all honesty I never really thought about graduation as anything but the end of high school. But in reality, it is the beginning of a whole new world. I never realized how much I'm going to miss seeing everybody everyday and going to classes; even though I hate it sometimes, school is practically like a second home. This was fantastic and perfectly painted a picture of the idea of graduation. Great job. :)

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  33. I'm not going to lie, graduation, for me at least is one of the most terrifying things to think of right now. It kind of feels like the end of the world and in some ways it is. But this piece has really led me to see it in a new light. The simile you gave about us being flowers finally allowed to bloom, really made a lot of sense to me. Thanks for writing this Rachel, i feel much better about it now!

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  34. Gosh how much I love reading pieces like this. Graduation is literally NEXT WEDNESDAY.. we have only a week left till we go off to college or whatever path we've chosen. This blog showed what truly is in store for every single one of us, not to mention what we're going to be leaving. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece. Great job!

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  35. this story is really good advice when im a seinor /jakob cadena

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  36. I agree with Rachel's piece, Graduation shouldn't be taken lightly because of our life after that. Graduation is not the ending, it is our beginning. Like phrases such as "Happily ever after", we know that they end with a positive ending, but what comes after is "after ever after", where instead of an ending of a Disney movie, the movie continues to play. After graduation, that's when we become independent, unless otherwise.

    I liked how you give us a small amount of the real world after graduation, It's almost time to eat up those words and do our best until then.

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  37. This piece really stood out to me mainly because I think it echoed not only many of our fears about moving on into the world as fresh young adults, but your own feelings as well. The part I think I most enjoyed was when you compared us all to flowers ready to bloom, because I feel it represented the beauty of moving on into our new lives.
    - Percy Starks

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  38. I really like this piece because it made me think about the future and what I will do. It also made me think about what I've done in high school. Good job! and Good luck to your future!

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  39. That was a very interesting take on graduation. I really enjoyed your writing style and felt that the chronological way you organized your essay in was very effect in a crescendo sort of way. I, too, fear these monumental steps we must take after graduation and the path of becoming a different person. I hope that we stay super awesome friends and I would rather enjoy it if we didn't move on from each other.
    It happens so often as you've stated, but I always hold out hope that it doesn't always have too.
    Great piece. Although sad, I really enjoyed it!

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