Parting Words ’26
Since Kindergarten, I’ve been told about graduation, but being able to move on from NA seemed a goal too distant to ever be reached. Year after year, graduation felt that it stayed just as far away as it was when I was in elementary school.
Now, almost suddenly, I’m graduating. I can now eat Play-Doh all day long… or whatever my elementary school self was imagining I would be able to do as a high school graduate.
Despite my excitement for graduation, I cannot ignore how many memories I have made in my time at this school. Of course, there are aspects of any school experience that are stressful, but I feel very lucky to have attended North Allegheny. From the classmates and teachers I’ve met to the opportunities and resources available to me, the NA experience has truly changed me as a person.
Many may be thinking, “I can’t believe I’m going to graduate,” but I CAN believe I’m graduating. I’ve spent my senior year crossing off days on a calendar, counting down the days until I get to walk across that stage. I’ve spent most of senior year wishing it away. Now, I’m a mere week from graduating, saying goodbye to North Allegheny, which I’ve been a part of since Kindergarten, and heading off to college.
Looking back. I’m thinking to myself, maybe I shouldn’t have wished it all away so quickly.
I spent my senior year only thinking about the future. Initially, it was the thought of where I was going to go for college. Everyone and their mother would ask me, “Where are you going,” and I would stutter and say, “I don’t know. I haven’t heard back from everyone yet.”
That waiting game scared me. With each email, I worried if I was going to be accepted, as if an acceptance letter would offer proof of my worth. I applied to small liberal art schools, not because I liked them or they had the proper classes for me, but because it would make me look good to everyone else. This only made me think about the future more intensely. I tried to picture where I was going to be, which dorm could fit all of my posters, which food was the best.
Really, I should’ve taken in every tour and applied to colleges I genuinely liked, not colleges that I thought looked good to others.
Many conversations with my therapist made me realize this, and in the end, I was stuck between two colleges I wanted. I chose IUP. It’s not the most prestigious, but it is where I see myself, and for once I’m not worried about my future there. I am actually eager to see where it takes me.
As I write this, I am surrounded by some of my closest friends in a Starbucks, cramming for the Stats final. Some of these people have been with me since middle school, though most of our interactions since then have occurred in a group chat, which is crazy. The first time I’m hanging out with all of them in years is the last week of school. I wished all of senior year away, failing to recognize that I do have friends at NA, and even though I felt like I was alone, I wasn’t. All of them were going through similar things, applying and deciding. If I took the time to slow down, I could’ve seen that they were there to help, too.
Looking back now, I should’ve leaned on my supports. I shut myself in, forgetting they were there for me, too. And now as I prepare for graduation, I am leaving most behind. Most of us are going to different colleges, some across the state, others across the country. Again, it makes me worry about what will happen in the future, and I feel myself rushing through the final moments filled with worry.
However, I am no stranger to long-distance friendships. My best friend lives in Ohio, and we still see each other.
So as my parting advice, incoming seniors and juniors, slow down. Life is already fast — don’t make it faster. Take your time deciding on a college. Find one that is right for you, not right for your parents or siblings, but you. Make sure your interactions exit the group chat. Make connections with people in your classes. Find your friends. They will support you and hopefully slow your world down. So now as I can fully believe I am graduating, I look back on my fast year with regret, but I know how to learn from my mistakes, and I truly believe my future will be great.
Thank you to Mr. Morris and The Uproar staff for making this year slow down. It might not have seemed as much, but it was helpful. Being Editor-in-Chief was definitely a highlight of my year, and I wish the next one the best of luck. You’ve got this.
Four years in high school made me realize that most people would rather choose money over happiness. People have the false belief that more money means more happiness. Depending on your definition, that can be true, but money doesn’t buy fulfillment. Fulfillment comes from meaningful connections.
I’ve seen students tell themselves they need to attend a top 20 university to get a high-paying job. They don’t care what job it is, only that it pays well. But ask yourself this question: Can money bring fulfillment? If you say yes, how much money do you need to be fulfilled?
Material pleasures will trap you in a cycle of greed. That greed can destroy any connection you had with your loved ones. No amount of money can fix relationships. In the end, I say to choose a career that offers balance. Life is full of trade-offs, but your goal is to find an equilibrium.
I love NASH, and I’m going to miss it. I’m extremely thankful to my teachers and my peers. NASH taught me a lot, whether in or out of the classroom. High school forced me to ask many difficult questions, and those questions might not be answered until I graduate from university.
One thing, however, will remain constant for me: Fulfillment shouldn’t be sacrificed for material pleasures.
I would be lying if I said that my experience in high school was not intertwined with significant personal hardship. Throughout my freshman, sophomore, and junior years, I attempted to balance my desire for academic perfection with unforeseen familial circumstances that completely altered my life forever. Everything that I hoped for seemed to be just out of my grasp, but I convinced myself that if I worked hard enough, I could achieve it.
Although my hard work was incredibly rewarding, I often found myself sacrificing the moments that were most important instead of valuing the freedom that high school afforded me. I had the opportunity to try anything without having to worry about the side effects of failure, and yet I found myself too afraid to take advantage of what high school had to offer.
Only this year did I truly recognize the importance of granting yourself grace and putting yourself out into the world with little regret. After three long and difficult years full of intense work and effort, I decided to finally allow myself to breathe and to enjoy being young for the first time. I joined a variety of new clubs, began to write for the newspaper (which I had never done before), went on a school-sponsored educational trip to Spain, and became the head of NASH’s arts magazine, all with the hope of learning more about myself and my own interests.
I cannot stress enough the importance of allowing yourself the freedom to fail. You will never be extraordinary at everything, but approaching any challenge with an attitude of open-mindedness creates a strong environment for personal growth and empowerment. I have grown so many wonderful friendships in my senior year, and I am proud to report that my final year has been full of wonderful memories that I will forever cherish.
When I first set foot in high school, you couldn’t have paid me to willingly interact with a stranger unless it was absolutely necessary. I would go to class, do just what I needed, and, in my mind, succeed at school by earning the highest grades and doing no more than that. It was only during senior year that I truly made an attempt to expand my perspective and change my priorities.
Even the smallest of interactions with a person you’re just barely familiar with can make your day significantly better. There’s no reason to isolate yourself in the hopes that detachment will allow you to excel academically. You can do both.
I wish I had come to this conclusion earlier in my high school career, but I want others to know that it’s never too late. Your high school experience does not have to be defined by choosing between success and connection. Some of the most memorable experiences will happen when you least expect them to — when you start acting on how you feel in the moment and caring less about how your actions will be perceived by others.
My advice to those like me: think less and do more. And pick up a book every once in a while.
If you had explained to me last year everything I would accomplish in Journalism, I would have said you were lying. I took this class to mostly fill my electives, but also so I could explore a different type of education. Journalism provided a point of view that I never would have seen.
Throughout this class, I learned so many different skills. I learned what I was good at and what I wasn’t so good at. I also discovered what my passion was. One of my best skills in this class was creating news packages, short informational films that informed viewers about a certain topic. I continued to get better and better throughout the year and provided so many positive and meaningful videos.
Not only did I find my passion in this class, but I also made some unforgettable memories. My best friend and I got the opportunity to do two amazing podcasts. The first one was about how 2016 is becoming the new 2026 and all of the memories that came with it. It was such a good podcast that I still go back and watch it sometimes. Our last podcast was even more nosgitic. We were able to talk about our friendship and how it all started. That podcast was so meaningful that it almost made us cry while editing it. That has to be one of my favorite memories from Journalism.
This class genuinely taught me so much about myself and everything I want to accomplish when I go to college. So when I leave NASH, I am going to Duquesne University to study Integrated Marketing Communications, which is a mix of marketing and media.
In 5th grade, I was given a t-shirt alongside my classmates with “Class of 2026” written across the front. I remember laughing with my friends and saying, “That year is never going to come.”
It feels pretty surreal to admit that fifth grade me was wrong, and to say that the year that has been tagged to our class like a countdown is finally here.
For 18 years–our whole lives so far– we could always see what was coming next. We went to school for nine months, got a three-month break, and jumped up to the next grade to repeat the cycle. But throughout that seemingly mundane system, many things changed. We got to different buildings, meet new teachers, and grow as individuals.
When I look back to why I wasn’t afraid of these changes, the answer lies in that t-shirt I was given back in 5th grade. “Class of 2026,” isn’t just something that categorizes us — it’s represents a group of over 600 students who experienced childhood together. All those early mornings were worth it, knowing that when we went to school we would be surrounded by our best friends, knowing that we were not going through this experience alone.
The advice I would give to anyone going through this journey is to be yourself. Life is too short to be embarrassed over the smallest things. Realize that the time you have left with your friends is short, and make the best of it while you still can. Enjoy the time you have left with your class, and take the year that is attached to it seriously. When you leave NASH for the last time, don’t walk out with any regrets.