By Joseph Case ‘19

What can I possibly write that can captivate everything that this past school year has brought to me?  There have been too many cherishable moments to count.

I think back to the first day of senior year when I received a syllabus in all my final classes at Brother Rice High School. I remember thinking, “This is the end.”

As endings go, my finale at Brother Rice has been one to remember. If my high school experience was a TV series, I would applaud the writers of the show because everything in this past year has wrapped up in a remarkable way. While I do not want “Game of Thrones” or high school to end, all good things must come to an end.

The beginning of the end was homecoming. In August, I asked my now girlfriend Erica Hollander to the dance and it was the perfect way to start off the best year of my life. In fact, homecoming is what influenced me the most to ask her out. For that I am grateful as she has brought so much joy to my life. The dance itself was amazing, with the exception of that awful DJ.

The middle of the end would have to be going to New York with the Mother McAuley Theater Department. I’ve become so close with all of those people through the many productions I’ve done. It was truly breathtaking to see four Broadway shows in the Big Apple. It was in New York that it really sank in that I was going to graduate very soon.

Our group walked past a big sign that said “2019” and for the first time, it sank in that this year was my graduation year. The year I’ve been thinking about ever since kindergarten when I first learned how long it would be until I graduated. It feels like a short time ago, “2019” was this distant number that I could always count on being in the distant future. Now reality is sinking in and I will walk across the stage at SXU within the next few days.

The end of the end will be on May 23. I have not experienced it yet, but I enjoy thinking about it. My name, Case, is towards the beginning of the alphabet, so there won’t be too many people before me. I will be happy for my friends as they walk across the stage, and a subtle smile will come across my face when they call my name. After I receive my handshakes and diploma, I will return to my seat and I will sit in awe of the past four years. I will think about homecoming, the New York trip, writing this article, and many other memories that warm my heart. I will think about the friends I have made, the teachers I admire, and the lessons I’ve been taught.

Most of all, I will think about God. He’s the writer of my life, and he has truly wrapped up this past year in a remarkable way.