I recently brought my yearbooks back from Sac and had a good laugh going through them…hilarious comments from friends who knew my goofy side (“I see a booger in your picture”), cordial comments from acquaintances (“you’re quiet as a mouse but a good dancer”), pictures of various school activities, and reminders that, yes, it really has been 12 years since graduation.

This truth was made even more evident when we flew back to LA to attend Sarah’s high school graduation. The graduating class of 2007 numbered 800 students! (Is that the norm nowadays? I think Valley’s class of ’95 was only a couple hundred, which dwindled throughout my four years there.) It’s a strange feeling to know that someone you thought of as being so young at first is now attending college. When I first met Sarah, she was just graduating from jr. high. This year, one of my cousins also graduated from high school and will be moving down to Irvine for college (one of two cousins there!). I don’t even know if I’ve seen my cousins drive cars, and I still remember them being so little and carrying them in my arms.

I also remember my own high school graduation, which was held in the Community Center. We sat on stage, looking out over our family and friends, keeping an eye out for the light in back that told us when to stand and sit. I also remember forgetting my CSF sash at home, and how my mom dashed home and brought it back to me. I remember being just about to file into the auditorium when my mom came running up (probably in dress shoes!) with the sash. It’s amazing that she made it from downtown to Elk Grove and back, found parking, and found me in time. It didn’t mean a whole lot for me to graduate wearing that gold sash, but it meant a lot to me that she would do that for me.

I also was reminded about the giddiness of high schoolers and the pride that comes with everything you do. Three girls behind us who were obviously best friends gave a running commentary throughout the graduation. When the speaker at the podium recognized two students who had died during the school year, the girls chattered, “Oh how sad!! I don’t know what I would do without you guys!!” I didn’t turn around to look, but I’m almost positive they hugged each other tightly at that point. Or when individuals were called to receive their diplomas, the girls would say, “There’s Ashley! GO ASHLEY! Aw, she’s so cute! This is probably the last time we’ll see her,” followed by a collective, “Aaawwww…” And at the end of the commencement ceremony, they excitedly talked about how one day, they would all be graduating together. “Class of 2010!!” one of them called out.

As I sat through Sarah’s graduation, one thing I did NOT remember was the optimism and hope that comes with youth and graduation. You’re embarking on adulthood and taking on a whole different level of education that brings you one step closer to being in the “real world.” Three students gave speeches, and they all had the same hope-filled theme of having the power to do anything, to make a difference, to use their lives to do good in the world. Being in the class of 2007, one girl gave her speech a “007” theme, saying that they–as secret agents–have been equipped with tools to go out and fight poverty, find the cure for HIV, stop global warming.

Part of me wanted to stand up and applaud the optimism and cheer loudly for the students to YES, go out and DO GOOD! I was reminded of my room as a high schooler–memorabilia about saving the earth, positive Bible verses, inspirational quotes (OK, and the Eddie Furlong posters above my bed). But the other part of me wanted to shake my head and warn them about the real world. “Real world” being the reality that your boss may not always be a good person, that companies do care more about money than their employees, that having a real job can mean emotional stress, and that your idealistic dreams often will get shot down by people around you. But the hopeful side of me won. If everyone kept that positive attitude throughout life and believed in that can-do spirit, I believe the world really would be a better place.