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The Last Day Of High School

by

DATo

Today is Friday.
Today is a formality.
Today is the last day of high school.
Today I close a chapter of my life.

The last day.
The last Friday.
The last 3:30 PM.
The last bell.

I loiter behind in the classroom.
I hear the tumult beyond the door subsiding.
I venture forth.
I see an empty hall.

Locker doors left open like gaping mouths.
Locker contents abandoned like the detritus of the Mongol Horde.
Locker eyes staring as I walk by.
Locker - slamming voices evermore silent to my ears.

I pass the trophy case displaying ancient and modern-day triumphs.
I pass the plaque on the wall displaying the names of former students killed in the war.
I pass the auditorium where we gathered for pep rallies.
I pass the enormous double stairwell which leads both up and down.

I feel a sense of freedom.
I feel a sense of apprehension.
I feel the warmth of afternoon sunlight as I pass through the gothic entrance for the last time.
I feel my future beckoning.

Today is Friday.
Today is a formality.
Today I close a chapter of my life.

A new chapter begins.

The last day of high school for me was ages ago. But closing life chapters will always feel the same: triumphant but anxious. Still, no choice in life but to go forward.

What a beautifully written poem. It takes me back to my last day of high school years ago