High school graduation I do remember. It was really exciting, and I was more than ready to move on with life. But it was the end all of everything like it was for some people at my school. They were acting like this was the Biggest Deal Ever. And maybe it was for them. Classmates were getting cars, trips, and lots of cash. I got a dictionary and a cookbook. Which was made me roll my eyes, but I've actually used both quite a bit in the last 20 years!
I was ticked about the top 10 seniors, because I was number twelve. SO CLOSE.
I remember being hot and sticky in that polyester graduation gown, and wishing that the girls got to wear black instead.
I also remember having to triple check to make sure they said my name correctly. One of the school secretaries would walk down the row at practice and write the pronunciation of each name on the list. "Like Karen with an M" was my explanation when she didn't get it on the THIRD try. Seriously? I had a good friend named Nghi and she got that super easy. Whatever.
I know most schools have formal graduations in big concert halls, but I really liked being outside. It was a beautiful, clear California day, with a slight breeze and swaying palm trees. Granted, some people seemed to think they were actually at a football game with the way they acted . (Shouts and blow horns and jugs full of pennies. Seriously, some people.) But still, I liked it.
This is probably the only graduation ceremony I've ever really enjoyed. By the time I finished college I was a week away from getting married and didn't really want to go to the ceremony. (I did, though. Mom, Dad, and Grandma made me.) And going to graduations for other people? Not so much fun. Lance feels the same way - we skipped his undergraduate ceremony and only went to the one for Purdue because his his family came!
I remember the who day feeling kind of surreal. I had gone to school for so long and worked so hard, and there it was.
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