Moving on
Graduate examines life after school
I’m Hannah Rudderham and I am officially a 2018 graduate.
Last month, my column “The Riverview Notebook” ended with the talk of graduation and prom quickly approaching. Many graduates talked about their exciting adventures that are soon to come in September when I last left off.
In “A Caper’s View,” I’ll be talking about what it’s like to graduate from high school in Cape Breton, making the best of the summer and then moving to an entirely different province to start university.
This new experience began with an ending. I had an exceptional year at Riverview Rural High School and graduated with three-year honours with distinction and many different scholarships that I’ve been very grateful to receive.
Prom was amazing, despite almost drowning in the rain on the night of.
Lena MacDonald is another graduate from Riverview High School and also someone I consider a close friend.
“My favourite part of prom was getting dressed up and seeing everyone else looking their best on such an exciting night,” MacDonald said.
I have been waiting for graduation for a long time. I had never been to a graduation ceremony before so I was sort of nervous to see how things played out. It was two hours long, but it was great to see all of the accomplishments that my fellow classmates had to be proud of.
“The best part about graduating for me, was the accomplishment of finishing something I essentially worked on for my entire life,” MacDonald said, “It’s also nice knowing I can move on and start new and exciting adventures.”
For me, I think the most stressful part about graduation season, is trying to plan a grad party.
I’ve been working on the project for a while, but between making sure you didn’t forget anyone on the guest list and walking into a decorations store to see very few items left on the shelves, it’s quite trying. It may seem like a lot of unnecessary work for just a party, but my parents like to consider it a “going away party” of sorts. I’ll obviously see my close family when I come down for breaks, but who knows when I’ll get to see some of my acquaintances and extended family again?
MacDonald has a different reason that grad parties are stressful.
“It may sound funny, but the most stressful part of grad party planning was setting the date. Everyone has their grad parties around the same time and it was difficult trying to pick a date so I could have most of my family and friends there,” MacDonald explained.
This summer, I want to hit some of the hot spots in Cape Breton since I don’t currently have a job. I’ll be trying to go to some of the festivals that happen in our local parks and checking out some new shows at local theatres. Although I won’t be working, I suspect a busy summer is still ahead for me. I have dorm shopping to do, a grad party to host and some more Cape Breton to see.
In September, all of friends are moving onto their new adventures and so am I.
“This fall, I will be attending CBU to get a Bachelor of Arts focusing on Political Science and French,” MacDonald said.
For myself, I will be moving to Fredricton to attend St. Thomas University. I’m taking a Bachelor of Arts with an intended major in Journalism. I also got accepted into the musical theatre class for next year so I’m excited to be able to continue my passion while at university.
This summer has lots of fun things ahead. If you’d like to hear about a newly high school graduate who is exploring Cape Breton and will soon be moving to university, I’ll be writing “A Caper’s View” bi-weekly. Now it’s time to begin the next chapter in my life.