The departure

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At the end of every year, Jim Thorpe sends graduating seniors out into the world. Students go through twelve years of school for the day they can finally say they have made it. Graduation is a stepping stone in life that transitions the once teenagers into the world of adulthood. It is a happy day. It is the first day of the rest of their lives, but as one door opens, another one closes. Graduation also means college, jobs, or moving away. Four years of high school was a long time full of friends and bonding relationships. Separation from these people takes a toll on both ends of the friendship.

 

Junior, Takumi Hawes, was asked about the friends that have left to go onto college. Who did he lose?

 

“Erin Kelly graduated last year, and the year before that, Haley Cope graduated. Erin was in my Algebra II class during my freshman year, but I didn’t actually know her or Haley until I joined Scholastic Scrimmage later that year,” Hawes comments.

 

How often do students really see their friends now that they have gone away?

 

Hawes adds, “I don’t see either of them very much now since Haley is at MIT in Massachusetts, and Erin attends Seton Hall University in New Jersey. However, I was able to see Haley earlier in the year when she was speaking in one of the JT Talks lectures, and I saw Erin when she visited the school during her Christmas break.”

 

Separation is a make or break situation for many friendships. The friends may drift apart or lose touch. Hawes tells that not being in the same building five days out of the week definitely makes it harder to stay a part of his friends’ lives.

 

Should this separation really affect the relationship though? Is friendship really determined by the proximity of the two? Hawes believes that it really should not affect the relationship. It is 2016, after all. There is technology out there now that keeps friends at ready fingertips. Friends are never more than a phone call away. Hawes tells that he often stays in touch through social media. The social media world gives constant updates on their lives.

 

Although the situation should not affect the friends in hindsight, it still does. There are struggles of staying in Jim Thorpe as everyone goes his/her own way.

 

“I think the hardest part of staying in Jim Thorpe after they left was having to move on through the rest of high school without them,” Hawes replied.

 

When asked what advice Hawes had for people who had friends going away after graduation, this is what he had to say, “If you have close friends or family members leaving after graduation, then you shouldn’t be too upset that they’re leaving. Instead, you should feel proud that you knew them and feel proud of them because they completed high school and are going on to bigger things in college or their future careers.”

 

Mrs. Mary Vermilllion, math teacher at JTHS, added, “Saying goodbye to friends and family who are leaving for college is always a challenging time. Deeply rooted in that “goodbye” means there is change and change is always difficult. Fortunately, our amazing technology has filled that total void. There are so many ways to interact with our loved ones that the challenging part is finding the time! I have found that my best friends are those who I may not see for ages but when we get together, we just pick up right where we left off. As you get older, your relationships are redefined and you may grow apart and reconnect. What is important is to make the most of every moment together. Put down that cell phone and really be with that person!


Just remember, when one door closes, another one opens.

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