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In Their Own Words

Graduation Speech Intro


Alicia Janos, 18
Northwest High School
Darnestown, Maryland

As freshmen, life was overwhelmingly, exhaustingly demanding,
Eat, sleep, and school.
Don’t trip and fall in front of seniors,
And don’t act like a fool.

"Each floor is like a baseball field,"
The teachers all would tell.
So why can’t I find room 222?
Oh great, there goes the bell.

No pressure from the sports team tryouts
‘Cause all we made was JV.
While upperclassmen said, "thaz aight"
We would yell, "yippee!"

I know, how cool were we?

But what amazing concepts to grasp
Who knew bands could play real notes?
And lunch could consist of nothing, but HoHo’s,
And we could wear hats, and coats.

Notes to make, tests to take, work to fake,
There’s just not time enough.
Can you believe papers have to be typed?
Our lives were really tough.... OR NOT!

Now we look at the freshies and think
"We couldn’t’ve have been so annoyingly immature.
I can’t be seen standing next to this beastie,
Come on, let’s sneak out the door."

As sophomores, slumped over with attitude and rights
We were still a wee bit too callow.
"What is she wearing... oh man, how grotesque!"
How we wallowed in being so shallow.

What an awkward year it was to endure,
Not freshie, but still no respect.
Some attracting significant others,
While some had the opposite effect.

We could be found playing or attending
The football games, soccer, and track.
Praying our moms’ wouldn’t be forced to drive us,
Begging rides to and from, forth and back.

As juniors, 9-11 united the school,
Age does more than our years on earth.
Concerned for loved ones, with more on our minds,
Those that mattered, things that had greater worth.

All too soon, junioritis infected one and all
In not 2, not 5, but 7 classes.
Who needed food, we saved homework for lunch,
And more signatures on bathroom passes.

With warm weather, like eggs, we were starting to crack,
SATs, college visits, straight A‘s,
Spring prom, spring break, and spring in our steps,
Those minutes dragged on like days.

As seniors, we’re awesome, there are none who compare,
We have wit, humor, charm, looks, and class.
Four years of work, winning, whining, and wrath,
Are part of our glorious past!

The sniper attacks, the snowfall, gulf war
Were obstacles we overcame.
Any one of these might have stymied lesser classes,
But hey, we’re on top of our game.

Now we have deeper issues we like to discuss,
But now far removed from school.
"Did you see who won American Idol?"
"My college has an Olympic-sized pool!"

My, my, looking back, how we’ve grown and matured,
Look out world, and pay us some heed.
Out of chaos and struggles emerged a confident "we,"
I have no doubts that we will succeed.

Congratulations class of 2003... We’re on our way!

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