Summary

At my graduation, a duet was sung, and a certain line really stuck with me:

I hope you never look back, but I hope you never forget.

Do you ever hear something, and then it strikes you that whatever you just heard is exactly the thing you needed to hear? You've unexpectedly stumbled upon a gem of wisdom, a truth that you somehow knew existed but had yet to put articulately into words. It's so true, so applicable, and yet the wording is so simplistic. 

I feel like this is something particularly relevant to coping with this last year. 

I think I've benefited from moving. It's difficult thinking about the things I missed, but then I realize that I have everything I need, and I should be grateful for the opportunities presented to me regardless of where I live. I needed this move to help me realize things about my life. 

To sum up the past, rather odd, year of my life: increased sense of humility & gratitude, more independence, more responsibility, greater appreciation for and recognition of my life's blessings, confidence, learning the importance of friends, and a closer relationship with my Heavenly Father & immediate family. 

I wouldn't do it differently if I found the rewind button of life.

Just keep in touch, k?

I want to ride on the back of a moped with a ridiculously good looking boy.

I'mma Graduate

 "I know what I'm gonna do tomorrow, and the next day, and the next year, and the year after that. I'm shakin' the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I'm gonna see the world. Italy, Greece, the Parthenon, the Colosseum."

1.  --George Bailey

1. 
   

C'est official. 

I'm a high school graduate.

Bring on the rest of my life. 

#NewLifeMantra

Favourite Underrated European Monarch

Wilhelm II.

First, I would like you to take note of his mustache. There are few men in the world, Hitler, Van Dyck, Stalin, whose mustache has become synonymous with their name and figure. Wilhelm is one of them. This alone is merit enough for a "favourite underrated" status.

Also, this guy is very eccentric. He referred to himself as "Emperor of the Atlantic" (and his contemporary Edward VII as "Emperor of the Pacific") in every day conversation. He would keep his ministers up at all hours lecturing on anything--Germany's greatness, the military, the importance of the navy, himself, etc, etc. One of his ministers, who was notable for being a royal suck-up to His Majesty, is said to have gone home (after schmoozing the king during these unendurably long nights), swear loudly, drink vodka or some other heavy liquor, and then sleep for 24 hours. He also tried to start many wars, especially one between England and Russia. After he became Emperor, he refused to wear anything but his military outfit. George V recorded in his journal how whenever forced to visit or accept a visit from Wilhelm, which was much too often for poor Georgie, he would dread it, only to breathe a sigh of relief once the crazy monarch left.

(Wilhelm is just so amusing, I'm doing  a terrible job enunciating the many ways in which I'm amused by him.)

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."

--Leo Tolstoy

Adaptation, not Assimilation

So last Thursday was my last day of high school. I was not sad. I will not miss anything concerning my current high school. I'm done with it, I'm over it, I'm ready to leave this place. As the title says, I feel like I've adapted to my high school, but I have not assimilated. I don't feel like I'll be leaving anything behind, no immense sadness has come over me. I think it's important to make that distinction. Anything I'll miss about high school I already do; I left it behind in Michigan. It can be summed up as friends, quiz bowl, and AP Euro.

A friend of mine bought me skittles, some boy in my second block gave me his phone number and told me to text him....it was slightly awkward, but this is my life. (And I will not be texting him.) I talked to  more people in one day than in the past eight months that I've been at high school.

Onto bigger and better things. Please. Here's to hoping college is nothing like high school.