Dear Person I Met In High School

I am less than a month away from graduating this place we all collectively dred and also collectively cherish. And it has become a time of intense reflection on the things, places, and people who I have experienced along the way. One thing a lot of us were told was to not worry about the people we meet in high school because ten years from now they won’t matter and you won’t remember what classes you had with them, where they sat or  what their favorite color is. They say, you probably won’t even remember their name. And I cannot promise that I will, for I have the memory of a startled fruit fly. But I can promise that I will remember you.

If you get this letter, you meant something to me. And for better or worse I will remember you. I won’t remember every inside joke we have. I won’t remember what songs we listened to on the way to our school events. I won’t even remember what you told me you wanted to be when you grew up. But I will remember how you made me feel. I will remember that you were a part of the good side of my high school experience. I will remember that you gave me something to believe in when nothing seemed available for such a task. I will remember that you gave me a family, when mine seemed so very far away some days. I will remember, looking back on the people who will graduate after me, the young ones, the ones with so much light in their eyes, that you give me hope for the future.

I can tell you that I learned more from you than it may have seemed you learned from me and that I will cherish and use those lessons for the rest of my life. I will cherish those moments when we were safe inside the walls of a classroom, or a theater, or a gym, and all that mattered was whatever hilariously stupid stunt the teachers were pulling to be “cool” or fixing the stage lights for the fifth time in two days. I will equally cherish the moments that weren’t so safe. Some nights doing things our parents wouldn’t always approve of. More importantly came the days we faced obstacles much beyond what a teenager should and we rose to them. We took the world in our hands and shook it awake. Everytime we looked adversity, danger and risk in the face and stood together stronger than any of us could have alone.

You taught me who I was and gave me a place to explore that where I would be safe and be loved. I can only hope I contributed to a similar environment for you. And as I leave the halls of this place we shared, whether it be for three years or one, I will remember your impact on me with clarity and sincerity. And should we ever run into each other again in this life or the next, I hope you come to greet me, and I, you.

“It’s been an incredible ride. Mission accomplished. With that, I have to bid farewell. I’m the happiest person in the world right now. It’s better than I ever thought it would be.” – Jerome Bettis