Growing up a little more

Written by Giulia Caterini
Wednesday, 15 June 2011 23:00

It is difficult to believe, but Greenwich Academy’s commencement took place on Thursday, May 26. The class of 2011 is done with high school.

That interminable stretch, those seemingly never-ending four years are finally over. It is all very surreal. At the risk of sounding cliché, it is also bittersweet.

On one hand, college is quite an exciting prospect; on the other, leaving high school means leaving an entire life behind. Everything we worked so hard to build over the past four years (or more for some) is no longer going to be a part of our daily lives. We have a blank slate in front of us and are faced with the daunting task of filling it.

All of this reflection on graduation and moving on has made me wonder, what did I really learn in high school? Four years is not a long time in the grand scheme of things, but when I think of myself at age 14 and compare it to myself now, I am looking at two different people. In the midst of all the tests, games, quizzes, etc. that make up high school, you don’t realize just how much you’re changing and growing.

The average Greenwich adolescent crams a lot of information into his or her brain during the course of those four years.

Now that I’ve graduated, I wonder how much of it is useful. I remember little of what was said in my junior year English class, but I will never forget the person who taught it, simply because he is an outstanding teacher. I probably will not implement the running techniques I learned during my time on the cross country team — mostly because I’m a terrible runner — but the bond I shared with my teammates is indelible.

In simple terms, high school teaches you to create and nurture relationships. You can’t write it on your résumé, but it’s the most important skill I can think of.

What matters is not the school structure, the books, even the grades or SAT scores (although those are extremely important. Underclassmen, do not mess up your transcript!) — it is the people who make up your high school experience. It sounds banal and hackneyed, but as often is the case with banal and hackneyed things, it’s true.

Giulia Caterini is a Greenwich resident who just graduated from Greenwich Academy.