Ah, May. A wonderful month complete with flowers, increasingly warm weather and sunshine. It also just so happens that May is the most stressful month of any high schooler’s life, especially for seniors. AP exams, finals, the increasing excitement for college and the thought meandering in the back of your mind that you’ll never see these people again. It’s well known that senior year is truly an emotional rollercoaster and the ending might just be the climax of it all. So, in pure Buzzfeed style, here are 11 things you feel right before graduating high school.

1.      Yay! Senior year is almost over! All the stress of applying to college in the fall, being accepted and enrolling is over. Graduation is just days away! You can’t wait to get out of school while the underclassmen still have to come in, and not to mention the famed Senior Week is quickly approaching!
2.  Wow, senior year is almost over… I’ve put in so much effort to get this far. It’s crazy to see how much we’ve all grown as people. I can’t believe it’s almost over…           
3.  I can’t wait to be in college. Finally the time has come for me to move out of the house and live on my own. So much freedom, it’ll be a new kind of different. I’m so excited to meet new people and tackle the new obstacles thrown in my way.
4.  I wonder where my classmates will be in 10 years from now. Growing up with all of the people in my class, I got to learn a lot about everyone’s dreams and interests. It will be interesting to see who is successful in achieving their goals or who ends up changing their career plans completely.
5.  “Senioritis” is very real. Some have it since freshman year, and for others it hits a month out from graduation. Regardless of how long you have it for, it’s indisputable  — senioritis is a very real concept. All motivation for doing homework and studying for exams has been lost and the only thing on my mind is graduation.
6.  What do I want to do with my life? What am I going to do with my degree? There are so many different careers and jobs, I have no clue what path I want to take. It feels like I’m taking a huge leap into the real world after graduation, I just hope I can find my way.
7.   I wish it went by slower. Throughout the entirety of my high school career, I’ve wanted nothing more than to be a senior and to graduate. But now with graduation so close, I wish I could turn back the clock. You really never know what you’re missing until it’s almost gone…
8.  I’m hoping I can keep in touch with all of my friends. Some of these people have been friends with me since kindergarten, others only since freshman year. Regardless of how long we’ve known each other, it is going to be difficult to leave them all behind. I can only hope I won’t lose touch with everyone.
9.  College is so expensive. I always knew college was going to put me at an average of $50,000 in debt by the end, but as a senior you truly begin to comprehend how much money that actually is. Not to mention how much more difficult it is to get scholarships with such strong competition in applications and essays. College is a huge investment and this puts a lot of stress on not just yourself, but your parents as well.
10.  I’m going to miss this so much. Friday night football games. Talking with my favorite teachers. Joking with my friends over lunch. I’ve grown up with these people. I’ve gotten close with them. You had your daily routine every morning to make it to school on time. You’ve hated it and loved it, but there’s a reason people say make the most of your high school years. It’s heartbreaking to realize years from now it won’t matter what the guy’s name was who sat next to me in Calculus or that one test I bombed. Change is scary.
11.  I’m so excited for what my future holds. So much opportunity lies ahead of me and I cannot wait to be able to take hold of my future. I’m more than eager to develop my career and learn more about myself as I go off to college and meet new people. Although the end of high school is bittersweet, sometimes you need to move on in order to grow as a person, and that is exactly what growing up is all about. It’s time for a new, more enthralling chapter of life.