A furry of graduation ceremonies are about to take place within the next week.

Graduation season is always a cool time of year, but the pandemic has made the 2020 version seem a little extra special.

There are plenty of examples in history where adversity leads to even more cherished moments.

I believe that will be the case for many of the graduating seniors. I know it would be the case for me if I jumped a time machine and was a high school senior again with all this going on.

The seniors at our local high schools were one of the first groups of people I thought of when news of the school year and sports seasons getting interrupted by the coronavirus.

I was so happy that the school board didn’t give up on trying to find alternative ways to make graduation ceremonies still happen.

I understand the concern that did and still exists, but it would not have taken away from the terrible feeling of not allowing seniors to walk across the stage.

Even though the main thing that matters is getting the diploma, and the ceremony is just pomp and circumstance, it is still very important.

In many ways, walking across the stage provides closure on one chapter of a person’s life and the beginning of the next.

Even if you are one that never really enjoyed school or didn’t seem to fit in with the whole experience and were counting down the days until the end, you still can’t help but respect the moment your name is called and you step on the stage for the last time as a high school student.

Enjoy it and remember high school graduation is only the beginning. The beginning of what? That’s up to you.