As a graduating senior, I felt like it was my duty to write something about graduation. But I thought and thought, and without much success. What did I have to say that isn’t cheesy, cliche, and been said a hundred times? Which is when a friend suggested I write about that exact phenomenon. So in light of my graduation, here are the most common things people say to college seniors who are graduating:
Courtesy: ThoughtCo
“I bet it went by so fast.”
Okay, yes. You, my mother, my father, every single aunt and uncle and older cousin and grandparent I’ve ever had were all correct. One minute you’re moving into your first dorm and the next you’re graduating. Life moves faster as you get older and everyone was telling the truth and I don’t know if I like it.
“What are you doing next?”
This one is only fun if you actually have a secure job or internship or grad school slot or whatever. Otherwise, it’s very annoying and sometimes disheartening and sometimes you just want to shout “I don’t know! I’m going home and sleeping for three months! Check back in 4-5 business months! ”
“Are you ready?”
I mean. Yeah, I guess. It doesn’t really matter, does it; graduation is coming either way. But honestly, yes, I’m ready for the next step of my life. I appreciated my four years of undergraduate and my friends and my experiences, but yeah, I’m ready to live off more than Ramen noodles and the dregs of my own sleep-deprived mania. Can’t wait to move onto graduate school where I can still be sleep-deprived but will cook!
“I remember when you were just a freshman.”
Me too. I looked mostly the same, talked less, and had slightly higher stress levels. And yes, I also cannot believe it’s been four years. It’s been a journey for us all.
“It must be so bittersweet.”
Yep. As exciting as it is to be moving on to a new stage of my life, I’m going to be moving pretty far, and it’s going to be really weird to leave the friends I’ve made over the last four years. Those friendships have meant so much to me–it’s definitely bittersweet to have made such wonderful friends only to have to move far away from them again. Good thing there’s Skype and social media.
“Congratulations!”
This is absolutely merited. You did it!!! Congratulations, everyone is very, very proud of you and you deserve good things! College is hard and you did it!
Courtesy: Quartz