08

I went to Western High School's graduation today. Ah, nostalgia. To think that it was a year ago when I myself was standing in that football field, enrobed in white and clad with trinkets and sashes that indicated my triumph over that merciless beast - high school.

They were all so happy. I bet they were all dressed in their best, ready to celebrate the biggest event in their lives.

For some, I know for certain that this high school graduation will be the crowning peak of their lives. They may never be as high up on a pedestal as they were today, for after tonight, all of their paths must fork and wind towards different directions. Some will go off to college...get their bachelors'...their masters'...but some still will remain stagnant at where they are, and perhaps even backpedal towards meager jobs at McDonald's or at Knott's Berry Farm.

They were all so happy. I wonder if all of them have given a thought as to what they're going to do in a few years. I wonder if they'll all outgrow the drama of four years spent in an isolated society kept alive by stereotypes, labels, and cliches. I wonder if they'll ever form happier memories, or if they'll just keep on looking back at their yearbooks and recall their high school lives.

In all honesty, I do believe that it is during high school that the strong are weeded out amongst the weak. How you fare in those four years determines where you go forward in life. Shallow though it may have been, I guess high school really is all that important.