I can’t believe it- grad year is here, which means seniors like myself are counting down the final months of high school. It’s mind-boggling that my life in Lake Oswego is dwindling to soon become memories as I get ready to embark on my new chapter in college. It’s both exciting and scary starting this journey and preparing to live on my own. It feels like it was just yesterday that I walked through the front door of the school on the first day of my freshman year. Seniors always seemed to share the piece of advice that high school flies by, but I never fully believed them until I became a senior myself. How could four years possibly pass in a flash? It’s difficult to understand in the moment, but looking back, I can confidently say that it really is true. 

Not only does graduation mean the end of high school and the beginning of life as an independent adult, but for the majority, it also means the end to their involvement in organized sports. Only a mere seven percent of all high school athletes go on to play at the collegiate level. That means that for most high schoolers involved in sports, senior year will hold the last of their athletic seasons.

While I am going on to run in college, I can relate with basketball. It’s crazy for me to wrap my head around the fact that I won’t have basketball season to look forward to in the winter anymore. I’ll no longer have dribbling drills or scrimmages at practice, and no matter how grueling they could be at times, I’ll miss every second of it. I wish I would’ve appreciated every practice and every game a little more because it never sank in that it would all abruptly end. It’ll remain a part of my past, and although I know it’s a normal process of continuing on with life, I just can’t comprehend how people can so easily move on and not be impacted by saying goodbye to their sports. I understand that not everyone is passionate about playing and rather do it for the social aspect or simply to get in shape, but eventually I would think that they would grow fond of it to some extent. After all, student-athletes devote so much time and energy into their sports as they go to practices everyday after school and it becomes a main aspect of their routine; it’s hard not to get attached to them. 

With all this being said, I have my own piece of advice to share: live and appreciate every little moment of high school and sports experiences with it, and don’t take anything for granted. When the time comes for you to graduate in your senior year, you don’t want to reminisce and have any regrets. These are the days that you’ll remember as a time in your life where you could be care-free and enjoy participating in sports with your friends, the memories that you’ll reflect on down the road and realize that they ultimately shaped your future. It all just depends on how much of yourself you’re willing to give and what you decide to make of your experience.