In just a few short days, I’ll be walking these halls for the last time as a student. I still remember the first time I got lost trying to find room B206, with panic rising in my chest  only to be rescued by a senior who pointed me toward the right stairwell. That small act of kindness set the tone for me ever since; strangers who became friends and friends who became family.

     I won’t pretend every memory was all sunshine and rainbows and laughter.I remember sitting on a bench near the pond in the last few weeks of the semester, convinced I’d failed Economics when Mrs. Hall found me looking doubtful and tired.he didn’t scold me, but instead she sat down and told me that mistakes are proof that we’re trying. She helped me get the help I needed to pass, and thankfully I did. That lesson: learning to stand up after falling, became the foundation for everything I would attempt.

     Over these four years I experienced a lot of phases. Freshman year I played football. Early mornings, long practices, and the unexplainable brotherhood I had with all of my teammates. Sophomore year I kind of lost my footing, and didn’t know where I fit in anymore so I just pushed through it. Junior year hit hard, not just because of the classes I took, but life and a girl. It tampered with me more than I expected. I’d walk the halls thinking I’d see her, but it was just silence day after day. It took me a while but I figured out, like we all do, people change and you just got to keep going. Senior year has been significantly divergent. I stopped trying to be someone I wasn’t, and just focused on the people who stuck with me; the ones who text you when you miss school or save you a seat in the car for lunch. It’s not really about being in the right group, it’s just about who’s really there for you.

     I still love my bench by the pond where I’ve spent countless lunches, laughing with friends and sharing hopes for college with the fear of leaving my comfort zone. It’s unreal to think that one day soon I’ll be in a dorm room instead of underneath that tree-shade shadowing the pond.

     To the teachers who pushed me, thank you for believing I could do more than I thought I could. To my friends who stayed up late quizzing me for finals and celebrating every flawless grade I received like a championship, you reminded me that success tastes so much better when you share it. To the walls of Plano Senior, thank you for holding my secrets.

     I find myself to feel bittersweet, as the final countdown commences. I am terrified of getting lost again, except this time, in a foreign city with a new routine. However, I carry a compass forged in my brain leading me in the right direction. Resilience I learned during late night study sessions, empathy grown in group projects gone wrong and joy discovered in many unexpected places.

     As we toss our caps into the sky, know that this ending is only the beginning. Wherever we go, we’ll carry the echo of laughter ringing in these hallways, the aroma of the gym after a sweaty game and the Wildcats who adapted even when it was scary.

     Thank you Plano Senior for everything. I will miss my time here, and I can’t wait to see who we all become.