“When I was in Highschool”

By Anna Ruble

Goodbyes are inevitable but yet incomprehensible for the majority of the senior class. We have all had our fair share of goodbyes, yet never with one another. We said goodbye as we all left during our 8th grade year, expecting to see each other again in 2 weeks. We said goodbye as Covid swept quite a few of us away to different countries. We said goodbye every summer, as we all turned our books into the library and got into our parents' cars. Each one of these goodbyes was sad, and had a lot of emotions tied in. However, none of these goodbyes were quite as impactful as the goodbye that is quickly tumbling towards us on June 6th. 

In nearly one month, every senior will gather together in a room. We will take our seats on a stage where typically we watched PB speak every Friday. A stage where many of us have performed concerts, plays, and worship. A stage where bittersweet memories rush through our heads, as we watch Miss Wood hand each of us our diplomas. 

There is comfort in familiarity. Walking down the halls and recognizing people’s faces is something that our brains notice, yet we don’t fully process that it might one day come to an end. On June 6th, these “familiar faces” will vanish from many of our lives. They will simply become a memory in our minds, whose faces will blur as the years continue to pass. It is likely that many of us will forget to say goodbye to someone whom we will think about later and wish that we had one more class to talk to them. One more class to play fireboy and water girl. One more class to watch basketball games during class. It is likely that these memories of high school will continue to live in our minds as we grow older. 

Many seniors have been in Dalat for longer than high school, making their classmates' faces more than just familiar. The thought of leaving, and never seeing many of them again is a hard thought to process. Popi Grous has been attending Dalat since 6th grade. She said, “I feel sad, I’ve cried a lot about it, I’ve cried so much. It is gonna be weird walking down the halls and like realizing that I won’t be talking to some of the people in our grade that I’m not super close to ever again. I’m so used to seeing them everyday.” 

Once, we receive that diploma, our high school years officially come to an end. No more memories can be added into our story book labeled, “When I was in high school.” Once we leave the doors of the harbor hall, we will begin to take pictures. We will look through the crowd of people to find  familiar faces once again. People whom we want to remember forever. People whose faces we are scared might fade. We ask to stand together as we smile at a phone that captures the moment. Now, we feel better knowing that their faces will never fade. Their faces will stay inside of our phones and we can open the photo when we want to tell a story from our book labeled, “When I was in high school.”