Senior Year: The Final Days

A few weeks ago I found out that I had the honor of being named one of the top 10 scholars in the class of 2012 at Rockville High School. It’s something I’ve always worked towards and really wanted, and I’m really thankful that my hard work paid off.

Being a member of that group, I was invited to a Top Ten Luncheon last Wednesday, where each top ten scholar invites the teacher that had the biggest impact on his or her high school career.

I, of course, chose my creative writing teacher Mrs. Nordlund who, for the past three years, has sculpted me into not only the writer, but also the person that I am today. I couldn’t have accomplished as much as I have without her help.

I was told by other teachers that the luncheon would be awkward, as it always has been in the past, because the scholars are to stand up and explain to the other scholars, teachers, guidance department, and administration why they brought who they brought. I decided to write down on a note card all of the reasons why I brought Mrs. Nordlund, as I’m not very good at thinking on my feet. I stood up at the luncheon and started to talk about some of the topics on the note card, such as how much she’s helped me for the past few years and how thankful I am.

Suddenly, my voice cracked and I was in tears. I couldn’t even get through the stupid card. I think I was the only student who really broke down and cried while talking about his or her teacher of choice, but I know a lot of the other scholars were just better at hiding their emotions than I was. I didn’t expect to cry at all, but I couldn’t help it. The reality of the situation began to set in, and I couldn’t fight it. It was actually kind of embarrassing - I’m not going to lie.

Aside from that, I also had the privilege of attending the senior scholarship and awards evening last Thursday night, and I can’t even say I went the whole night without getting emotional. To see all of my classmates sitting together, receiving awards and scholarships for their hard work and dedication to school, community work, and athletics, made me realize how special we really are. I was lucky enough to receive a few scholarships and awards, and I was proud of myself and everyone around me. Not to mention that everyone was all dressed-up and spiffy looking.

This week is my final week as a high school student. Thankfully I don’t have to take any of my exams during exam week, since at RHS you’re exempt if you’re passing with an 85 or higher. I have two days left as a senior, and then I’m done.

It’s exciting, but at the same time it isn’t. I feel like I’m the only senior who doesn’t really want to graduate. As much as I complain about school all the time, it’s actually not bad at all. It’s easy. I have friends here. I have ties to the school and the community. I feel like it’d be stupid to give all that up and leave, and yet I’m moving into college on August 24th. I feel like I’m leaving so much of my life behind and I’ll never be able to rebuild it in a different location.

So while these last few days of senior year are upon me, I have mixed emotions. I’m fully preparing myself to shed a lot of tears in the next few days. I feel so stupid for crying over high school ending, but I’ve built four years of memories within the ugly, jail-like walls of RHS. I need to make sure I purchase some waterproof mascara before graduation, or else things will get ugly.

Since I never mentioned it before, I guess I should probably say where I’ll be going to college, right? Well, I’ll be attending Roger Williams University in Bristol, RI this fall with a major in Creative Writing. It’s been a long road and a tough decision, but the plans are set and I’m an official student. The campus is absolutely beautiful and the writing curriculum has everything I wanted, so it’s a good fit.

While I’m still a little unsure about moving on from RHS, at least I have the comfort of knowing that I’m graduating from RHS blue and gold and entering into RWU blue and gold! Because, you know, blue and gold is my absolute FAVORITE color combination. (That was sarcasm, in case it wasn’t already detectable.)

Orientation for me is at the end of June, and that will be my first glimpse into the next four years of my life. Wish me luck, because I’m going to need it.