The end is nigh! I repeat, the end is nigh! No, not Armageddon, I’m talking about the other impending event of the future- Year 12 Graduation.
To quote my best buddy, Mel, we’re approaching the end of an era. And let me tell you, it’s been quite an era to experience. Starting out as quiet little midgets in overlarge uniforms as the kindy Class of 2001, our peer-group has come a long way to where we are now; taller young women in better-fitting uniforms with a lot more attitude to form the graduating Class of 2013. Many words have been used to describe my hopes and fears for the future and, relevant as that still is, I thought to ease the strain on my work-weary brain, I’d give this post some room for reflection.
Looking around my room, I’ve acquired my fair share of schooling memorabilia. From the clothing department, a brimmed grey hat (bought in kindergarten) hangs on a hook, t-shirts from school productions past sit folded together, while swimming caps and goalkeeper gloves idle away due to a lack of Saturday sport and an increase in sit-down study. From the art department, drawings of Ned Kelly, wooden character-cameras, purple self-portraits and multi-purpose ceramic pots, add eternal pops of colour to my forever-cluttered work-space. Yearbooks, certificates, trophies and bi-annual reports have found their way onto shelves, while countless photos have been received into the hands of relatives, or mercifully kept in their photo albums. Until my 21st birthday, that is…
As an avid people-person, it goes without saying that I will also keenly remember the many, many people who’ve shaped me and my skills over 13 years. I’ve made friends, lost friends, fare-welled peers and teachers, welcomed new students and learned something from every single one of them. Without some of those people, I never would have taken up soccer or debating (among other activities), or gained an interest in history, participated in amazing charity events, shown leadership skills, be fuelled in Christian connection, or even hoped to become a teacher.
Now, as I post this very belated article (for I now find myself with less than 35 days left of Year 12), I start getting sentimental. As someone who has tried to suck the marrow out of everything my school’s had to offer me, the inevitable question now comes: Do I have any regrets? I’ll admit- I do. I regret not reading more books from the library, not shouting my friends lunch more often, getting jealous at other people’s achievements, shying away from going further in conversations about religion, not studying as hard as I could have and keeping some of my more radical opinions to myself. Otherwise, I’m quite proud of all the crazy shenanigans I’ve achieved in 13 years. Where else could I win a prize for dressing up as a giant red chilli-pepper, conduct a choir of girls, work on a museum exhibition, and play men in musicals? It’s felt like forever to live it, but right now, my days of school have flown far too quickly.
Here’s to the final fifty, my friends. We’ll get through the HSC. In the meantime, however— ROCK N ROLL DUDES!!!
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