TEEN TALK

by Heidi Thorpe

Graduation Day

The night before graduation didn’t quite go as planned. I was supposed to dye my hair in the morning, a dark chocolate color, so that it would look nice for rehearsal that evening. I was then supposed to attend rehearsal downtown and afterwards meet my aunt’s for dinner, where I would give them their tickets and relax before the big day. The day I’ve been waiting for 12 years.

          Well, I got to rehearsal a tad late due to my internal compass malfunctions, smelling of hair chemicals that weren’t fully washed out. The whole rehearsal was basically to inform students of what they couldn’t do…which is a lot. No talking, no sudden movements, no blow horns, no touching, no throwing of the caps like in the movies, no stepping out of line or waving for any reason, and god forbid someone falls. They warn that if one were to in fact stumble and fall at any point, the board would review the tapes to be positive it was a mistake. If the crash appears to be for humorous purposes, it will result in the revoking of the diploma.

          They make the wise decision of waiting to distribute the actual tickets until the end of the get together, so that no one can bail half way through the scare tactics. They finally gave us seven tickets each and told us to be on time. Unfortunately my mind wasn’t all there, causing me to leave behind all seven of my tickets in the bathroom of the convention center.

          Fast forward through a great meal in City Place to my aunt’s place and then walking to my car to give them their tickets. That’s when I conveniently had the epiphany about the tickets and seeing that it was already ten o’clock, my only option was to call as many of my friends as possible to score extra tickets.

          The rest of that night consisted of driving from house to house in a thunderstorm, trying to make up for my little brain hiccup. Not the best night. But I made it home by one a.m. with enough tickets.

          And of course it rained on the day of graduation. I wasn’t about to let everything be ruined, so I stubbornly sat in my car until the coast was clear. I looked like a blue potato in my gown, finding it hard to keep the unflattering cap on top of my perfectly straightened hair. And the heels didn’t help with my fear of falling off the stage in front of hundreds, and then it being mistaken as a joke . . . ultimately leading to my failing of high school.

          But I was finally graduating.

          The boy in front of me had been a good friend of mine since elementary school, and the boy behind me I had never even seen before. I broke a few rules; I talked and waved to friends, it was impossible not to. This would probably be the last time we’d all be together.

          I wasn’t too nervous or excited until I actually got to the stage and realized it was kind of a big deal. Really though, my only worry was that no one would clap when my name was called. Fortunately my dad had bribed everyone within a ten-foot radius of him to cheer for a Heidi Thorpe.

          Within what felt like seconds, the ceremony was over and then the whole day was over. I graduated. 

Heidi Thorpe will be attending UCF, beginning in the fall of this year. THANKS to Heidi for being our Teen Talk columnist this past year and welcome to our next Teen Talk columnist, Evan Baumel!