Four years ago, I sat in the Mount Vernon Middle School Auditorium for the eighth grade commencement ceremony. There were lots of giggles and excitement among the group as they prepared to leave the middle school and begin their high school career. Many of them had just participated in the spring musical production of “Oklahoma!” and a few had been able to be a part of the fall Marching Band season because their skills were needed to fill out the band.
All eighth grade students go to the high school for their elective classes, so this whole group was familiar with the building they would soon be attending. No doubt they had heard stories of what it was like to be in high school and what they could expect. They surely knew of many of the traditions that existed in Mount Vernon and were anxious to become a part of this and experience all of it for themselves.
Their fall and winter as freshmen at Mount Vernon was just as fun as they had expected. They got involved with sports, music, marching band, clubs, school plays, service opportunities, and started preparing for the Speech season. Not only were they becoming a part of the legacy of Mount Vernon High School that they had been hearing about since they had attended Washington Elementary, but they were also starting some of their own traditions and creating their own memories.
And then March 2020 happened. I remember well the day that I picked up my two daughters (then a freshman and senior) from school before spring break. With wonder they told me, “Our teachers said to bring home all of our books and instruments because we might not go back for a week or two after spring break because of COVID.” Little did we know that they would never return to the high school for classes again that year.
I have watched those students who were freshmen that year go through many trials (as we all have) over the past three years as they have attempted to reclaim their high school experience. When they prepared to go back to school in person for their sophomore year, it was to be a hybrid experience; attending only every other day with only half of their classmates. That school year even had to be delayed by two weeks because of the derecho that devastated our area.
I have dubbed the Class of 2023 the “COVID Comeback Class” because of all that they have endured through their high school years. To see them joyfully experiencing all the festivities of the last months of their senior year, you wouldn’t know what they have had to persevere through to make it to this point. It has been hard, so very hard. We’ve all heard the reports of loneliness and depression among today’s teens and this group is no different. But I have seen this group rally together and lift each other up and be there for one another.
It is fitting that the Concert Choir will be singing “True Colors” at the graduation ceremony. This song was first recorded by Cyndi Lauper when I was in high school and has had a new life with a new version recorded recently by Justin Timberlake and Anna Kendrick. A few of the lyrics are especially poignant when thinking about all that the Class of 2023 has experienced during high school:
But I see your true colors
Shining through.
I see your true colors
And that’s why I love you.
So don’t be afraid to let them show,
Your true colors.
True colors are beautiful
Like a rainbow.
Show me a smile then.
Don’t be unhappy, can’t remember
When I last saw you laughing.
If this world makes you crazy
And you’ve taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I’ll be there.
Hats off to the graduating seniors everywhere of 2023. You have navigated some difficult years. You started out your high school education experience with bright eyes, expecting to get to have something similar to what you had seen before. You were dealt a very difficult situation, but you clung to family and friends and with courage trudged through a pandemic this world hadn’t seen for over 100 years. You have great cause to celebrate this achievement. You know now that you have the ability to do hard things. You are the comeback class.