I tugged nervously on the sleeves of my shirt and clasped my
hands behind my back. Don’t look them in
the eye- just look above their heads. I struggled to remember what Mr. Burge
had advised me to do when it came to public speaking. As I began my persuasive
speech for my sophomore English class, I fumbled my words within the first
paragraph. In my anger, I accidentally let a little too persuasive of a word
roll off my tongue and into the listening ears of my classmates. Mr. Burge’s
jaw hit the floor in shock, and by that point I had persuaded myself that it
would be best to hide under a rock.
The truth of
the matter is, we have all made mistakes at one point or another in our life.
Yet, despite our shortcomings, we were accepted. Our teachers and our school
saw something special, something different, and something wonderful about each
and every one of us. They saw the potential that some of us couldn’t see in
ourselves, and they gave us the opportunity to be a part of one of the best
educational programs in Northern Nevada.
We have worked hard to be where we
are at now, and after four years, we are finally at the finish line of our high
school career and the starting line of the rest of our lives. As a class, we
have created community service projects, received hands- on experience through
internships and job shadowing, and have competed in various organizations such
as SkillsUSA, ProStart, HOSA, FFA, and NASA Rover. As individuals, we have
endured thirteen years of emotional breakdowns, inadequate pencil stubs,
crumpled up pieces of paper, and have struggled to stay awake long into the
night just to finish an assignment.
We were considered to be the “different” kids-
the ones who would rather repair an old bike than buy a new one; the ones who prefer
to spend their Saturday night learning how to bake; the ones who were
determined to change the future. We were
the kids who weren’t quite sure what we wanted to do, or if we could even do
it, but we knew we wanted to do something. Something great.
Life isn’t
always going to be easy- and it never will go exactly as you planned. But
that’s alright, and you’ll be alright. Just remember to always do what makes
you happy. Remain different, remain curious, and the rest will fall in place.
I wish each and every one of you the
best of luck. Not only are we the graduating class of 2014, but we are the kids
who made it.
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