Farewell Class of 2018

My Wish

As the school year is winding down, I don't want to miss the opportunity to say goodbye to the graduating class of 2018. In just a few short days the seniors will be on their way and beginning an entire new chapter in their life. At the end of the year I like to include the words to one of my favorite songs, "MY WISH" by Rascal Flatts. The song was written and released in 2006 and I have always thought it had the perfect words to say to the students leaving Vantage. If you get a chance, go to YouTube and listen to it, you will enjoy. The song starts out by saying...

   "I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow, and each road leads you where you wanna go, and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose, I hope you choose the one that means the most to you. And if one door opens to another door closed, I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window, if it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile. But more than anything, more than anything... My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to, Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small, You never need to carry more than you can haul, and while you're out there getting where you're getting to, I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too, Yeah, this is my wish".

As the words say, I really do hope you enjoy life, take it one day at a time and don't get upset by some of the little things you will face. I hope you never give up when you run into trouble. Please don't give up on your dreams, use them as motivation. I also want you to know that wherever you end up or whatever you end up doing, I do care for you and I do want the same thing for you. My door is always open after you leave. Feel free to call or email me anytime. I welcome it.

   "I hope you never look back, but you never forget, All the ones who love you, in the place you live, I hope you always forgive, and you never regret, And you help somebody every chance you get. Oh you find God's grace in every mistake, and always give more than you take".

Some pretty simple rules that will help you as you head out into the "real world". Don't hold on to grudges or hold on to your anger just because someone may have made you upset. You will find that when you forgive, you will be released and set free from an invisible prison. You will be a better person because of it. Please continue to give back to the community in which you live. You will not believe how good it feels when you reach out and help someone. Many of you have volunteered while you were in school, keep it up every chance you get.

I know that some of you reading this may have been in my office because you were upset about a mistake you made or something you regretted doing. Remember that I have always told you that you learn from your mistakes. We all make them but it is the mature person who learns from it and grows as a person. Hold on to this bit of advice and don't forget it. I guarantee you will need it again some time in the future. We all make mistakes. Finally as the lyrics above started out with, I hope you never forget. Come back and visit us or send us a quick e-mail to let us know how you are doing.

So there it is, my wish for all of you seniors who are leaving us in a few short days. I thank you for trusting me with your friendship, your troubles and your last two years of high school. Good luck in all you do. As for all my other readers, this is my final blog of the school year. Thanks as always for reading the blog, the kind comments and the inspiration. Have a great summer!

One To Go

As I was standing at my "post" this morning saying good morning to all the students as they entered the school, Mr. Matt Miller mentioned to me that we only had one full week of school left this year. I was really surprised by this probably because I just hadn't thought about it. However, that is the truth. We only have next week and then the following week our Seniors will be having their award ceremony on Friday morning (May 18th @ 9:30). Matt and I discussed how the end of the year really crept up on us. We realize that every year seems to go really fast once the calendar hits April but why was this year feeling so different. I think the big thing has to be the weather. It seems like we had snow about a week or two ago and we were just waiting for Spring to get here. When the nicer weather arrives each year, we know that we have about a month of school left or close to it. Well this is really the first nice week of warm weather and we look at the calendar and see that we have just ten days of school remaining.

So with that said, the seniors will be getting really busy working on their portfolios, finishing up exams and finalizing all their graduation plans. I know some of you may be thinking that May 18th can't get here quick enough, but I hope that you will take some time and really think about the last 12 years of school, your accomplishments, all your friends and the many memories you made. Take time to reflect about where you are now compared to your freshman year. Reflect on where you are heading in the next stage of your life. I hope you have certain goals set as to where you want to be in four years or maybe ten. Setting goals is a great way for you to keep yourself focused. Goals are something that can drive you to be a better person and work harder.

I hope that all of you will finish strong and work hard on your final projects or final exams. Those can be the difference between pass and fail. Now is not the time to quit. You don't run a race just to come up a little short. Finish the race strong and bust through the finish line with your arms raised high and shouting "I DID IT". All of you should be proud of your accomplishments and the fact that you are graduating in two short weeks. I hope you will stop by my office one more time to chat, say hello or just talk about your future plans (and let me know of any scholarships you have received). The next two weeks will go fast, trust me. Find time to enjoy it and chat with your favorite teacher or staff member. Remember, time flies when you are having fun.