“This is the beginning of anything you want.” This is the quote on the store bought graduation card that I got in the mail yesterday. There is nothing incredibly profound about these words, but the more I think about it, the more true it seems. Up until now, each schedule, each after school activity, and each class has been mapped out for us by our family, our school, and the state of Ohio’s education standards. Entering high school was the first step toward freedom, but “this is the beginning of anything you want” is for the first time in our lives, completely true. It is a scary and exciting thought that the people I meet and the classes I take next year have the potential to move my life in a variety of different ways. I learned so much in high school about myself and the world. The people of Shaker Heights provided me with new ideas about politics and social issues that I know will take me so far. I feel that now that I have the skills, and I am ready to use them.

I think a little bit more about what Shaker has taught me and I realize that this is not the beginning for everyone. Not everyone has the privilege of going to college, taking a gap year, or choosing their own path.

In college, I am going to work to change this. I want to enter a helping profession, whether it’s nursing or speech therapy, and I want to work towards a world where anyone can have a new beginning- of anything they want.