I stand here ready to violate the graduation code of conduct
by cheering and casting my grad cap deep into the gradient of blue high above
I close my eyes, isolating the drone around me into a layer of silence
as I envision high school melting away into the featureless suburban horizon
reflected in my Corolla’s rear-view mirror
I then see myself three months into the future
sitting on the light rail
excited for my first day of college
Trying to find my classes
in libraries and departments with infrastructures
more complex than a termite colony
and stopping to listen to debates about new, strange, and fascinating topics
Encountering new, eccentric, open-minded, and sophisticated people
and making new friends
to eat takeout, study, laugh, shop, party, chill, struggle, spectate, and learn with
Delving deeper into my passion of creative writing,
exploring a parallel universe that I just barely tapped into
I don’t know what my major will be yet
but I know it will have writing somewhere in it
Rallying the basketball team to win
and joining some of the clubs
becoming one with the whole
Staring off into the three hundred and sixty degree panorama of jagged, manmade skyline
with colossal buildings of glass panels shinier than the sea itself,
brick smokestacks old as my parents,
and graffiti more colorful than the rainbow
I see the new and enchanted time
The breeze gently lifts my lips into a smile
as I open my eyes and let the drone back in
My cap is resting on the astroturf
and it has never looked so damn green
Before I know it I’m running off the stage
Shoving my way towards my family
I hug my mom, dad, grandparents, brother, two aunts, and uncle
Together, we weep, laugh, and bliss
celebrating the transition to a fresh start
