It seems like all anyone can talk about is senior activities.
Senior sunrise, senior backpacks, senior parking spots, senior crowns and many more traditions fill the beginning of the school year. These festivities are more than just fun activities; they are a way to appreciate and make the most of the last year we will all spend together.
As a senior, I’ve already felt the pressure to participate in as many of these activities as possible.
There is almost a collective thought for all seniors that if we continue participating, making memories and putting ourselves out there, we can somehow prolong the time we have left together. As if senior sunrise or decorating a parking spot could somehow stall graduation and give us more time.
As students, we often don’t appreciate what we have until we realize it will soon be gone. I will no longer see my friends every day, walk through the school with them or go to the football games together.
These things may seem small, but they create the entire universe of a 17-year-old high school student.
With graduation looming over our heads, so does the thought of college. Applying to colleges, searching for scholarships and trying to figure out what to do next can be extremely stressful.
We’re expected to make decisions about our futures that can feel like they will affect the rest of our lives.
Two of the most helpful people throughout this process have been Cassandra Campbell and Erin Bunch, our counselors, who are responsible for helping seniors prepare for life after high school.
They’ve held numerous meetings and opportunities to talk, they have helped us individually plan for our futures and understand the options available to us. I never fully understood the difference a scholarship could make until speaking with them.
While none of us will ever feel completely prepared for what comes next, they do their best to ease our worries and remind us that we don’t have to figure everything out alone.
Fall holds so much excitement.
Football will host its first home game of the season on Sept. 4, with a USA Patriot theme. If you are unsure whether you should go, remember that these are the memories you will want when you graduate.
The team has been working hard and deserves the support of our school and community.
Another thing to look forward to is homecoming, which will be held Oct. 23 at the high school.
Attending dances is one of the most popular parts of the school year.
The conversations about dresses, dates, dinner groups and who will be crowned queen will be the only conversation for weeks. Swapping dress photos, planning dinners and hiring photographers are all part of creating memories for after senior year.
Senior year can be overwhelming, exciting, stressful and bittersweet, all at once. But if there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the best way to get through it is to be present.
Graduation is coming, whether we are ready or not, and there's nothing to stall it. So enjoy what we have for now.
Sara Myers is a senior at Oglethorpe County High School.
