Azaa Battsogt

As events come and go, memorabilia is cherished, leaving seniors with memories to look back on in years to come.

Senior road trip, prom, senior sunrise: there are so many fun opportunities for seniors to make the best of their last year. So why wouldn’t every senior participate in them?

Yet, as the third quarter is coming to an end and graduation is right around the corner, I have noticed over these past few months that my friends and classmates are not living in the moment. My peers spend their weekends doing college applications and scrolling through scholarships instead of finding time for friends.

Now, I’m not saying it isn’t important to think about the future at all; that’s not my point. My point is, they’re cancelling hangouts and skipping events that only happen once in your life. That’s when you’re missing out. That’s when you can never truly take back time.

Although they’re both pricey, prom and senior road trip are both great opportunities to spend time with friends, especially since we only have two months left. Go spend the night dancing to cringey music in a stuffy room. Go to a loud amusement park to be with friends. A hangout doesn’t even have to cost money. You could go goof off in Target or go to a local playground. Be a kid while you still are.

As someone whose sister’s senior year was cut short exactly six years ago, I understand the importance of holding onto these memories. I saw the way she looked at her prom dress, ready on a hanger, knowing she was expecting to wear it just the next month. I saw the disappointment she felt when her diploma arrived in the mail instead of being given at her graduation ceremony that never happened. Since then, I told myself I’d live in the moment more.

When I’m with my friends, I record videos, capture photos, and keep memorabilia so that I’ll never forget. I value moments like those because I know I’ll never get them back. There’s only so much time left until my friends move away and we leave high school. After graduating, people go on different paths. The people I’ve grown up around, the people I’ve known since playing in a sand pit during recess, I may never see again.

It’s sad to think about now, but remembering is the important part. I want to look back on the good times when I’m sitting in some college class alone. I want to open my photo gallery while sitting in my dorm. I want to laugh and tell future coworkers stories about my friends. 

But those things won’t happen if you only focus on what might happen in the future.