Rather than reflecting upon my entire history at Granada, I will instead focus on graduation itself
Today was high school graduation. We may have all been wondering what the big deal was. What was all the fuss about? Who cares whether we are graduating "on stage" or not, especially as there was no stage? For whom was high school such a tough time that we are astounded to have actually made it through?
We're graduating twelfth grade, and in four months we'll be...in thirteenth grade!
It wasn't until I was picking out my beautiful watch that my mom promised me as a graduation present that I realized the importance.
It's not the culmination of four years. It's the completion of thirteen years of partially-involuntary education reception.
While our endurance of four years at the crowded, upper-class, high-achieving Granada Hills High School was indeed an accomplishment, we are really celebrating much more.
The high school graduation is not for the students, but for the families. Why else would people sneak in in suit and tie into their own graduation, when the truth is their names won't even be called? It is not even about the parents, who have been dealing with our education, listening to us complain about the endless homework, being forced to push back and remove our bedtimes, hearing our complaints about biased teachers, and having to explain the meaning of "she can't teach". It is for the grandparents, and the rest of the close but extended family.
It didn't take much effort. I'm sure most other students would agree, graduating in itself really wasn't that difficult to do. So why the huge celebration? Well, it's a coming-of-age celebration. Just as the quince, bar mitzvah, and sweet sixteen parties, it is celebrating arrival at a certain point in our lives. It doesn't take that much effort to turn fifteen or sixteen either, but look at their ceremonies.
We must also keep in mind that many of our parents and grandparents never graduated college or even high school. To them it is a truly significant event, one which they never saw.
And about the stage, well Granada does have four thousand students. We had over seven hundred graduating. Do you really expect to fit them all on stage?
Graduation is really a sad event, though. All those wonderful friends we've amassed through the years will be gone, and very few of them will we ever talk to again. I'm going to miss you all. But please do stay in touch. Whether it's through livejournal, Facebook, myspace (ew), email [ jneedle@umail.ucsb.edu ], AIM [nodirecti0n] (though I want to change it), telephone, I'd love to see you all again. Even people I didn't like, or had some animosity toward, it would still be nice to see you again.
The other thing I will miss is Science Bowl. For the last two years I've been a member, Treasurer and B-team co-captain this year. Science Bowl was a huge part of my life. If it weren't for Science Bowl, I never would have become involved in any of the math competitions (AMC 12, AIME, USAMTS), Chemistry Olympiad(school high score for second-year chemistry), or Envirothon. I spent all my time either doing origami, sleeping, going to school, or studying for Science Bowl (instead of homework). I temporarily failed classes to study for Science Bowl (I had a Fail in Psychology for a while...) The week before competition I put over forty hours and all my energy into learning geology for competition. It was all worth it. Both A- and B-Teams made top-five, with B-teamers Marena Lin, Jared Needle, Angela Liu, Alan Nam, and Steve He coming in fourth place. While we get zero school recognition, all Science Bowl members are extremely proud. Thank you MARENA LIN for mentioning Science Bowl in your speech, however censored it may have been. Science Bowl is one thing I truly cherish. And I am still not ready to leave it behind. I want to help coach next year's team. And when I move up to S-Barb I want to coach a local team. Science Bowl is love.
If you feel you messed up, you still have a chance to make it right for yourself: college. Just do your best in college. Sure you'll run into tough times (I worked my butt off for my C+ in Linear Algebra, good luck James, hope you beat me) but it is all up to you. Even if you are going to a college that you feel is inferior for you, rock on there, and transfer if you want. It is all up to you from now on.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF TWO THOUSAND AND FIVE!!! best.class.ever.
May we all go on to bigger and better things.
We're graduating twelfth grade, and in four months we'll be...in thirteenth grade!
It wasn't until I was picking out my beautiful watch that my mom promised me as a graduation present that I realized the importance.
It's not the culmination of four years. It's the completion of thirteen years of partially-involuntary education reception.
While our endurance of four years at the crowded, upper-class, high-achieving Granada Hills High School was indeed an accomplishment, we are really celebrating much more.
The high school graduation is not for the students, but for the families. Why else would people sneak in in suit and tie into their own graduation, when the truth is their names won't even be called? It is not even about the parents, who have been dealing with our education, listening to us complain about the endless homework, being forced to push back and remove our bedtimes, hearing our complaints about biased teachers, and having to explain the meaning of "she can't teach". It is for the grandparents, and the rest of the close but extended family.
It didn't take much effort. I'm sure most other students would agree, graduating in itself really wasn't that difficult to do. So why the huge celebration? Well, it's a coming-of-age celebration. Just as the quince, bar mitzvah, and sweet sixteen parties, it is celebrating arrival at a certain point in our lives. It doesn't take that much effort to turn fifteen or sixteen either, but look at their ceremonies.
We must also keep in mind that many of our parents and grandparents never graduated college or even high school. To them it is a truly significant event, one which they never saw.
And about the stage, well Granada does have four thousand students. We had over seven hundred graduating. Do you really expect to fit them all on stage?
Graduation is really a sad event, though. All those wonderful friends we've amassed through the years will be gone, and very few of them will we ever talk to again. I'm going to miss you all. But please do stay in touch. Whether it's through livejournal, Facebook, myspace (ew), email [ jneedle@umail.ucsb.edu ], AIM [nodirecti0n] (though I want to change it), telephone, I'd love to see you all again. Even people I didn't like, or had some animosity toward, it would still be nice to see you again.
The other thing I will miss is Science Bowl. For the last two years I've been a member, Treasurer and B-team co-captain this year. Science Bowl was a huge part of my life. If it weren't for Science Bowl, I never would have become involved in any of the math competitions (AMC 12, AIME, USAMTS), Chemistry Olympiad(school high score for second-year chemistry), or Envirothon. I spent all my time either doing origami, sleeping, going to school, or studying for Science Bowl (instead of homework). I temporarily failed classes to study for Science Bowl (I had a Fail in Psychology for a while...) The week before competition I put over forty hours and all my energy into learning geology for competition. It was all worth it. Both A- and B-Teams made top-five, with B-teamers Marena Lin, Jared Needle, Angela Liu, Alan Nam, and Steve He coming in fourth place. While we get zero school recognition, all Science Bowl members are extremely proud. Thank you MARENA LIN for mentioning Science Bowl in your speech, however censored it may have been. Science Bowl is one thing I truly cherish. And I am still not ready to leave it behind. I want to help coach next year's team. And when I move up to S-Barb I want to coach a local team. Science Bowl is love.
If you feel you messed up, you still have a chance to make it right for yourself: college. Just do your best in college. Sure you'll run into tough times (I worked my butt off for my C+ in Linear Algebra, good luck James, hope you beat me) but it is all up to you. Even if you are going to a college that you feel is inferior for you, rock on there, and transfer if you want. It is all up to you from now on.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF TWO THOUSAND AND FIVE!!! best.class.ever.
May we all go on to bigger and better things.