Pomp & Circumstance

My high school career (and possibly my childhood) came to a bittersweet close last night, as I finally graduated and kissed thirteen years of education goodbye.

Well actually, those thirteen years were much, much more than just simple mathematics and textbooks. I have befriended some of the most amazing people in the world (a couple of them I've known for over ten years!). And although I may have lost touch with a few of those people along the way, my memories of them will forever live in my heart. I've learned so much, both in and out of the classroom. I've faced the evils of failure and heartbreak, I've cried tears of sadness and joy. I have thought too much and then I've also thought too little. I've made mistakes, I've made good decisions.

For a good week, I had been rather...mopey about graduating. Not necessarily because I was sad to let go of my "ivory tower" life here in suburban Pennsylvania, but rather that I felt so "unfulfilled" by my high school experience. Too many regrets and "what ifs" plagued my mind and I didn't know how to feel about leaving. It wasn't until the day before graduation, when I read a little note I wrote to myself in sophomore year about what I THOUGHT high school would be like, that my thoughts changed a bit. And I smiled as I read it, since it was drenched in cynic and apathy, and I realized how my high school experience was SO much more than what I thought it would be when I was a sophomore. So now I can look back with a sly smile on my face and I'll be able to move on with ease.

I know that if I really did care about the people I'm leaving behind, I'd find a way to see them often during college. A big handful of my friends are going to school in the city with me, so pub meet-ups are definitely in the works.

My summer will be rather quiet this year, but I'll definitely keep myself occupied by doing the things I love (which I have time for now) and also preparing to move into my dorm. So long, childhood! The real world better watch out for this little girl right here.