It's all very humbling. You can meet people in the last few months of high school that you had never associated with before, and suddenly you connect with them on a level deeper than most relationships you've ever had. Then the inevitable reminder from fate kicks in... You're heading your separate ways.

Since the beginning of 2018, every high school senior could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Despite all the "senioritis", we trudged along step by step. Anticipating the long awaited admissions results, checking off high school bucket lists, and even preparing to walk across the graduation stage, we prayed that the end would come as quickly as possible. Now it's here.

Scrolling through social media posts on my feed, the word I've seen most often besides ConGRADulations or "On to better things" is the singular adjective that describes this point in my life and in many of my peers' lives: bittersweet

Beyond any words that could possibly describe this sensation, I remember too well how painful it was to watch the clock eat away at the life that I considered wasted as I sat in the halls of my alma mater for the last couple of months. Suddenly, the words of Virgil from my AP Latin IV class make sense: "Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit - And perhaps one day it will please us to remember these things"

To give you a list of some possible experiences that happen in a whirlwind of a senior's last month: AP Testing, Senior Banquets, Scholarship Notifications, High School Job/Internship Offers, Senior Mentoring to Underclassmen and Middle School Students for Various Extracurricular Activities, Senior Recitals & Final Performances, Disastrous/Traumatic or Wonderful/Dream-Come-True Prom Nights, Last Minute Calls to Academic Competitions for State Championships and Underdog Displays of Prowess, Final Exams or Exemptions That Lead To Senior Skip Days, Reminiscent Hang Outs with Your Crew, Countless Graduation Parties, First Dates That Go Well For Once, Speaking To The Senior Class at Awards Night, Impromptu Karaoke Nights and Crashing Asian Family Parties, Time With Grandparents and Cousins You Haven't Seen For Ages, Purchasing The Most Expensive Hardware You've Ever Spent On, or maybe even Replacing a Laundry Machine Set That's Needed Some Love.

Oddly enough, this is only a snapshot of what every incoming college freshman deals with during the last month of their senior year. This also includes incoming servicemen and servicewomen as well as our peers joining the workforce. Fate does not discriminate with its chaos. Every young gentleman and young lady that graduates from secondary education faces the craziness that places them on the cusp of adulthood. Still, does that mean we're ready? I guess we have to be at some point.

While my friends are living it up and savoring their last moments as high school students before entering college life, I love hiding away in my turtle shell. This summer is refreshingly empty for once. No summer courses, minimal competition and university preparation/orientation, no resume builders. Retreating away from people and their craziness is healthy. Parents and family are there still, but that's a given.

Sure, I don't feel ready to move past high school yet. By the end of this summer though, maybe I'll learn how to turn past this last page. Perhaps doing so will help me finish this chapter and get ready to turn to the next one to come.