Before I begin, I want to thank all of the administration and teachers for making this graduation possible. I would also like to thank the parents and the community for being by our side all these years.

Media CEO Dick Costolo once said, “There is no script. Live your life. Soak it all in.” 

Today is proof of that. This is not what we expected our senior year to be. It was nearly 5 months ago where my worries were coursework, the college decision, the fate of friendships, and the details of prom and “promposals.” Our day-to-day lives have changed. We completed our classwork online and learned to connect with each other while being apart. Now our senior year is coming to a close, and I realize the importance of continuing life. Our future has not ceased to exist, but is shining brighter than ever. 

Being in quarantine these past few months has given me time to reflect upon these past 4 years and our high school experiences. Going into freshman year, some of us were scared. I for sure was. I was under the impression that high school was going to be like in the movies. I wrote in my journal that I was “nervous because I will be at the bottom of the food chain!” But, those of us who shared these same feelings soon came to realize that high school wasn’t as scary as we thought it was going to be. We all simply needed to learn how to be ourselves and navigate the chaos of the lunchroom. 

Sophomore year was full of personal and social growth. This is the year that we developed the confidence in ourselves to meet the ones around us. Yes, we formed into groups, but we were always interconnected. I could never get to one class without seeing a friend on the way. It was this year where we met those friends that will stay with us forever. 

We learned a lot in our junior year. Being upperclassmen, we became leaders and assumed new responsibilities. We earned the privilege of trusted independence. Among the memories of junior year, I would like to highlight prom. When the date was released, we all penciled it in our calendars. We all dressed in our best. That attire is still fresh in our minds. We remember getting ready, laying out that dress or suit hours before the event. And when the time finally arrived, we entered the room with our friends, feeling grown and confident.

And now, we have the memories of our senior year. Although we will not have the moments of Senior Prom, Senior Skip-day, Senior Prank, or Senior Trip, we do have the memories of our first semester of senior year and the years previous. It is those precious moments that we will hold onto at all costs. When that song plays, or that movie goes on, take a moment to reflect upon the nostalgia it may bring. It is those happy times that will help guide us in the future. 

We all survived months of online classes and quarantine. More impressive, we have graduated high school. I have no doubt in my mind that we will be able to face all the challenges in our future. As our graduation year comes to an end, remember the times we spent walking through the halls. When summer begins, remember your first day at work or summer gym classes. When school starts in the fall, remember Mr. Poblete’s jokes that would make you crack a smile. When the holidays come, remember Ms. Kook’s singing and the merriment in the hallways. When you face danger, remember that Dr. Beebe’s stories prove that anything is possible. We have all of these experiences. They are the key to our success. We will succeed, because we are the Class of 2020.

(Sara Beth Bouchard is the New London High School Class Valedictorian.)