Gracie Herring: Once a Hawk, forever a Hawk

Graduation season is always a bittersweet time, but it is a lot different when you are going to be the one walking across the stage. Graduating means different things for everyone.

Seniors spend time dwelling on what is coming to an end when in reality this is truly just the beginning. Some will take this as a ticket to freedom, while others may be feeling nostalgic looking back on the memories shared while celebrating one last win on our football field, together, in our cap and gowns. High School has brought me the people that will be at my wedding, the future aunts and uncles to my kids, and most importantly my forever best friends.

It isn’t just about doing school work and playing sports, it's about taking some of the best years of your life and living them to their fullest. I can confidently say that's exactly what my friends and I did. From cheering on our football team with the Hawk Krazees through torrential downpours to surviving a pandemic together, it has been a wild four years.

Although the last year and a half of our high school experience weren’t normal, we made it the best we could. Our staff worked relentlessly to help us continue to learn, and our parents worked together to give us the best senior year possible.

Throughout the last four years we have celebrated victories together, supported one another through losses, but most of all we worked hard as one big team to get to this point. Nothing stopped us from getting here. Not hurricanes, not trouble in the classroom, and not even a pandemic.

We have proven time and time again just how resilient the class of 2021 truly is, and I couldn't be more proud of each and every one of us. Despite the hardships that came with COVID, it gave us a chance to spend more time together outside of a classroom setting, finish assignments during spontaneous beach trips, and even allowed us to bond with friends from our rival school (y’all know who you are, and I love my devils dearly).

I could not have wished for a better senior year, despite all of the chaos that came with it. To the underclassmen, do your schoolwork, have school spirit and be consistent. Join that club, make new friends, go to the games, and participate in spirit week. You will look back on these memories and be so glad that you did. High School is what you make it, and if you try hard enough it will be one of the best experiences you ever have.

So here I am, saying my final goodbye to the place that has been a second home for me and many others. North Lenoir, you are my favorite place and I am not too sure I am ready to part ways. The Swamp provided me with so many unforgettable moments that I will forever cherish, but I cannot wait to make more at Appalachian State. This is not just the end, but a whole new beginning that I know North Lenoir prepared me for. Once a Hawk, forever a Hawk.