— Raina Warner ‘23
Friends and family, teachers and staff, and my lovely, lovely classmates, welcome to our graduation. If we haven’t met yet, I'm Raina, and I’m going to the University of California Santa Cruz to study Marine Biology. Hi!
If you didn’t already notice, today is a big day. Today we grow up. Our whole lives we have been dreaming of this moment. We've finally made it. I know every one of us has been counting down, whether it's chalkboard walls where you change the number daily, a countdown timer on your phone, or you have it engraved in your brain (18 minutes now). We've all been waiting. One thing we've been hearing is, ‘to live in the moment, and suck all the goodness out of our last seconds.’ So with that being said, I'm going to be taking everyone with me for a couple last days before today.
Breathe
I'm writing this sitting around a table with my fellow seniors, playing scrabble and chess, and eating Icelandic pizza. We're obviously being too loud, arguing about how castling works, and if “nother” is a real word. Graduation is currently in 19 days. Asher and I just counted that out on our fingers, then cheered.
Breathe
Today we were taken back by the beauty of where we are. We went off road to absorb it, still in awe that it's real, and right in front of us. We ate cold mac and cheese and hot dogs in the rain, Watershed style. We have 17 days left.
Breathe
I turn 18 tomorrow. This is my last day being a kid. To do one last childish thing, Keira and Zora and I ran up the hill 30 minutes before midnight, let out a massive long scream, and ran back, barefoot. There are 14 days before graduation now.
Breathe
13 days left and today, just as the cabin crazies were hitting, we decided to play Just Dance. For 3 hours. People did duets, solos, and even group dances. We were laughing so much we grew 6 packs. I guess last night wasn’t the last childish thing I’ll do. I don’t think I’ll ever stop being a kid.
Breathe
Seven hours on a plane, and three Disney movies later, I arrive home from my last May Term ever. Greeting us back at school were parents, and some seniors from the Kenya trip. Seeing Skylar's face from the bus instantly woke me up, and we all ran out to greet everyone we had been missing. We are 8 days away.
Breathe
Today was it. The final day of high school, ever. I decided to decorate my car, writing “‘23 Grad” on it, and added some final touches, of having every senior write their names around. Unfortunately, it kinda washed off when it rained. But that's okay. It’s the thought that counts, and of course, the memory. Tomorrow is THE day.
Breathe
Senior dinner. Something we’ve all been hearing about for years, but never knew what actually happened. I don’t know if they do this every year, but this time, they sang. Jen, Tim, and Hannah performed a lovely rendition of the Pixar song “I Lava You,” with individual parts dedicated to each of us. It was absolutely adorable, and everyone was tearing up a little. Tonight is the last night of being a high school student. I’ll see you all tomorrow.
Breathe
So here we are. Zero days left. I took you on this journey with me because I wanted you all to experience the moments with me, as they were happening. I’ve learned that it's not the big events but the little ones that make a "Watershed Moment." Together we have lived out our travel fantasies, running through moss covered fields in Iceland, towering over vibrant mountains on a 14er during backpacking, and shimmying through canyon slots in the vast empty desert. However, people always assume these are the moments we'll always remember, but the ones I find myself looking back on are dancing to Celtic dubstep on a 3 hour drive, accidentally drinking powdered cheese because we thought it was lemonade, or clapping in and out of our senior prank night… without teacher guidance. I am so incredibly lucky to have been able to share these small, but nonetheless remarkable moments with you all. Thank you for existing, and for being unapologetically yourselves.
Breathe
Currently, you’re either ecstatic– ready to leave, to finally be here today, completing this milestone, and starting your life. Or you’re sad. Sad to see your whole world changing, to be independent, away from home, to leave a place you know like the back of your hand and people whose faces you’ll always remember. Or, you’re a little bit of both. All of those are okay. Because today, we grow up. And that’s a good thing. The entire world is at our fingertips, as we start our futures as scientists, lawyers, artists, and theoretical particle astrophysicists (bless me). Today we are growing up, but we are not growing out of being little kids with big dreams. As we part today, we are leaving to become. We are a collection of beautiful souls, large hearts, and unique minds, each destined to create a legacy.
To our teachers and staff, thank you for helping us flourish. Thank you for implanting the seeds into our brains that made us have these huge dreams. We will try not to disappoint. And thank you Hannah Filley, for the times you let me slip into class a few minutes late without being marked. You’re an angel for that.
Family, thank you for supporting, encouraging, and holding the space to let us climb, fall down, and get back up again.
And finally, rising seniors, maybe this speech is going in one ear and out the other, but if there is one thing to take away from my rambling, it is to always be unapologetically yourself, and to never fully grow up.
Congratulations guys. We finally made it to day 0.
