Hi, my name is Petra and this is my graduation speech.
At first I wanted to write about something that all of my schoolmates can relate to, about something positive and touching. But the truth is I couldn’t. I barely know my schoolmates because of Corona and if I did it would change nothing because even though we all go to the same school and to the same classes we all experience high school differently. For some is the best time of their life and for some the exact opposite.
I remember the first time we all or most of us met in summer camp. The excitement for a new chapter of our life to be finally open was high. We didn’t know what was going to happen to us here or even if we were gonna last. Let me tell you I was unbelievably scared and still kind of am but in a different way. It was kind of magical for me because I didn’t know anyone and no one knew me. I guess lots of you were on the same page as me in this so we had a new opportunity to be our new selves and remove flashes that we had because no one knew about them.
Everyone used to tell me that the hardest time in high school is the first year that you just need to adjust there and then it will be fine. Well, our school is a bit different. The first year is hard and then with every grade it gets harder and harder. Even though you think that it can not be harder let me tell you my friend it will be.
Surviving high school is maybe one of the hardest tasks that we had in our life so far. I remember that my teachers in middle school used to tell us how high school is great. How much we will enjoy it. They used to tell us stories about the time when they were in high school. It always involved some sports or reading clubs. I guess the stories did charm me enough so I was not really going in their footsteps. But also they knew how high school can hurt, that it can be painful, that there are days when that’s all it is. They tried to prepare us somehow but in my case it did really help. I had some days when I wanted to stop it all and go somewhere else. I sacrificed most of my social life just to have more time to study. I let few people down because of my desire to do better all the time. Is it really worth it? I asked myself this question so many times but I still don’t know the answer.
Last couple of years I have been thinking about my future. About by what means it depends on how we succeed in school. About how much we try. It is scary. And we still don’t know the answer. We still don’t know where we will end up. What job or jobs we will have. But no matter how hard life after school will be I know that it will get better. This school taught me that. So many times I thought that in no way I can make it but we are now living proof. You can survive, you can get through it. Even with corona or ten missing assignments you can do it. It just takes a bit of work, nerves and courage.
If in any point of your life you ask yourself if it is really worth it think about the time when you were in school and had doubts about it all but in the end you made it and was proud of yourself like never before.
I wish you all the best.
P.P., študentka II.BG