Life is full of new and exciting things. There is always something to discover and always something to do. No matter where you go if you are looking hard enough as stated in the movie "Up" (yes, I am quoting Disney), “Adventure is out there!”

But life is also full of endings. Endings are sad. We never want them to come, but no matter how much we try to wish them away, they always do come.

This time of year is graduation season. Oh yes, this exciting event that everyone dreams of. Everyone is excited to go off into the world on their own. Well, mostly everyone; some of us would rather not leave home, but we can not stay home forever. As I come upon my graduation though I have mixed emotions.

On the one hand, I can not wait to start my life outside of school. On the other though I am really sad to see things end. Endings are hard and they are not much fun either. Whether you were the kid who was super involved in everything and just lost your final game or had your final performance, or the superb social butterfly that has to say goodbye to all your friends. Maybe you were the teacher’s pet or the shy kid, any way you put it, endings hurt.

One thing that I think scares everyone the most is the not knowing. We have no clue what to expect once we leave this place we have been at for so long. This place has become comfortable to us. We know what to expect from it. We know where to go. We know where we stand here.

In the same sense, however, is not that the thing that is exciting about graduation. We get to go out and explore the world! We get to take our first steps out into the ‘real" world. Yes, it is not always going to be easy. Matter of fact more often than not it will be really hard. But is not that when we learn where to go? When we learn where we stand? The only thing you can expect from the ‘real’ world is the unexpected. That sounds cliche, and I’ll be the first to admit it is, but I think it is only true.

If we live our entire lives always knowing what to expect, how will we ever learn anything? We won’t. It is not possible. If my teachers have taught me anything it is that we must always continue to learn. In our everyday lives, in our school work, anywhere. This is how we grow as people. This is how we become our own person.

So yes, graduation is an ending. And endings are sad and they hurt. But endings are not forever. As one door closes, another will open. There is always another chapter in the book. What I am trying to say is that maybe, just maybe, this ending is good. This ending is okay because it is not really the end. It is merely the beginning.