Not many things in life besides life, itself, have a hard deadline. One of those few experiences with a deadline is high school, and for me, that date is May 25.

As the Class of 2017 walked off the stage at graduation ceremony last Friday, I thought about how my time sharing interactions and experiences with them was over, as there was a divide between us now. They were done and moving on and I was not.

The impact that a few of the graduates had on me on a daily basis is irreplaceable. I have lost an example to follow and a group to defer to in stressful situations. They were a safety net, but the net is gone.

As our former seniors traverse America in pursuit of an education, I will spend another year on the corner of Pine and Octavia, thousands of miles from many of them, with my only consistent contact being a social media post.

The impact they have had and the experiences we have shared will live on, functioning as a reminder of what an impactful role the elders at an institution can have.

When I envisioned being a rising senior, I envisioned it with a glowing view. I imagined I would be excited to be the oldest in the school, with an abundant amount of power and social equity. But as I sat in the bleachers and watched the guys leave the gym, I could only think about what I would give to go back just a couple days.  

Time is almost always limited. No one lives forever and although we don’t know when the end is coming, we know it will. High School is no different, just the end is given a date. The four years that a person is given may be short, but if treated like an opportunity to effect change and make a difference, the impact created can live on long after a person’s years.

Whether in life or in high school, the effect that a person has on those around them stands as a strong testament to the caliber of person that they are.