The Graduate

    Today is the biggest day of our lives so far.  It is the end of a long journey together, and the begining of our lives as we drift apart.  I stand there in my graduation gown as a young man and say my farewells to childhood.  Though I say my goodbyes, I struggle not to think to long for I know that those sweet memories well definately reduce me to tears.  At the same time, I refuse to look into the future for i must remain confident and doubts of what is to come plague me.  Thus, I stand in the moment and in this moment i am standing in my high school gym.

     I stand in front of the third chair from the center isle in the second row on the western side waiting for the rest of the rows behind me to fill.  As I stand, the gravity of the moment begins hitting me.  I feel my heartbeat begin to accelerate.  My eyes dart around to everything that moves in front of me.  I hear a soft, nervous panting and realize it's myself.  In my mind, I repeatively tell myself to pull everything together.  We had practiced the entire graduation yesterday.  I have this.  Just do not screw it up.

     My nervousness only gets worse whenever I realize that i have forgotten all the gestures and the timing that we had practiced.  A sigh of relief washes over me as I notice a hand gesture to be seated coming from my soon to be former principal standing behind the podium.  As he begins talking about our class and lieing about how much he has enjoyed us, I try to be productive and scan the people around me for someone to watch and follows movement.  To my right sit the twins.  My friend and the guy with shich I had walked sits to my right and i decide he will be my best bet.  My principal finishes his speech and introduce our former english teacher that the class voted to be our speaker.  She cries as she tries to give her final address to us and i can feel in the atmosphere that several students are also fighting back tears as we all sit there. 

     I steal a glance back in the direction which my family is sitting in the audience once we are standing and walking towards the stage to receive our diploma.  My parents' pride show through their smiles.  A friend's parents, who are my surrograte family, are sitting close to my family.  My surrograte mother is crying as she watches both two of her all but legally offical sons are ready to walk across the stage. 

     "Samuel Richard Higgins." my principal pronounciates and my best friend steps upon the stage, ready to get the piece of paper that so many years were spent trying to recieve.

     "Charles Aidan Doyle." family and friends in the crowd cheers as each foot hits a stair and I appear on stage.  I look directionly into the eyes of the man who just stopped being my principal and we were both glad to know we no longer had to deal with the other.  After letting go of his hand, i finish my walk across stage and stand back in front of my seat waiting to be seated. 

     Once everyone had returned to their seat, there was a slide show of pictures collected from each student.  It was a recount out our years together and acted as a visual reminder for all those of us that had been fighting back the tears.  We then left in pairs, just as we had arrived, and were instructed to go to the cafateria.  Our teachers had prepared one last gift for us.  A large envelope filled with various items, such as: a copy of a paper that was part of a speech given by a famous businessman a couple years back, a signed book from a speaker that spoke at the state function of a contest in which I had participated with a note from my accounting teacher in it, as well as other inspirational items. 

     The administration finally dismisses us a few minutes later and I go to look for my family.  Unfortunately for me, my family monopolizes the rest of my time and I dont get to talk to anyone before the room is cleared.  I head home and celebrate my achievement with my family.  Relieved knowing that this chapter of my life is finally over.