The Big Finale
It’s the big finale! You are a senior, eighteen years old. You are cheering, singing, going to dances, and shopping. You are studying and planning for college. You are breathing. You are talking. You are walking. You are ALIVE…
Breathe momma, you know how,.. in and out, in and out…
Okay ….
In my dreams, you are here. You are with us, completing us. Nevertheless, reality keeps getting in the way. You aren’t picking out homecoming outfits, or winter formal dresses. There’s no planning for prom or graduation or all the high school lasts that come in between.
Just let the tears trickle. Feel it, and know it is LOVE…
Okay …
I watch your friends from a distance, and I am proud. Their love and honor for you is beautiful, yet tragic. They remember YOU and say your name and it makes my heart well for a moment. It is hard to see all the beautiful memories we will never make. It is pain, yet it is LOVE.
It’s building, the shudders are big now, but you can do it… keep breathing, in and out…
Okay …
You made a difference in this world in just 11 years. I can’t help but wonder what you would have done with 70 more. It feels like my heart was ripped out…stolen in the night. We were robbed blind and yet forced to go on.
Breathe… again… and again…
Write!!
Okay …
Senior year is here and well on its way. The kids you grew up with for 11 years and 363 days are grown now. They are planning their futures, getting ready to go off into the world. That is exciting, and so very sad. This is the finale, the final big connection and they are about to disperse and go on their way.
Keep going…
Sigh …
I hope they take a bit of AVA’s Way into the world and never forget they are loved. The bond they have is forged with the strength of a little girl who wanted so badly to grow up with them. She will shine over the coming months and lead them through their last goodbyes as Bondurant Farrar’s class of 2024. That was her way, so I say without a doubt she will be there every step of the way to graduation day.
No cap, no gown, no pictures, no party. Nevertheless, Ava Elizabeth Hutchinson, you are a class of 2024 senior. We will honor you, we will remember you, we will say your name. Somehow, no matter how big or small, we will celebrate your life well lived.
Just breathe….
Why!?!?
You have to…
Okay.
