senior activities and lack of context

well, it's over. melissa and i have been with the class of 2006 for the past five years and now they are gone. here's a brief run-down of what's happened in the past week and a half...

may 18-22 - senior trip: classes ended for the seniors a week earlier than for everyone else. then they flew off to boracay - one of the most popular vacation sites in the philippines. 73 seniors and seven chaperones spent four days relaxing on the beach and swimming and drinking sweet shakes from jonah's. a couple of nights melissa and i took some of our senior friends out to an indian restaurant. as we reclined in pillows eating roti and curries and broiled lamb, zeb crawling around on the floor of the bamboo building, eastern music mixing at the window with the pacific sea breeze, i realized that my life doesn't have a context for what i was experiencing. i never imagined just a few years ago that my son would be eating nibbles of indian bread on a pacific island - a vignette that most north americans will never come close to experiencing.

may 23 - baccalaureate: the beginning of the public senior activities. all the kids got dressed up and listened as parents and teachers gave them advice and encouragement as they leave faith academy. as class advisor, i got to m.c. the night, introduce the class, and add my own little prayer of blessing.

may 24 - parent breakfast and yearbook dedication: the last day we needed to wake up early. the parents of the graduates all got together for breakfast as the seniors talked about their plans, fears, and expectations for the coming year. it was neat to meet parents of the kids who we had been watching grow up for the past five years. then the tables were cleared and we lugged out the 2006 tiwalan. it was a great moment to be able to distribute the yearbooks before the school year ended (something that doesn't happen around here too often). mrs. haniki theron - long time home economics teacher here - got the honor and gave a very gracious and unexpected speech upon receiving the first copy of the book.

may 25 - graduation day: the afternoon of the last day of school was graduation day, but the ceremony wasn't the notable event of the day, that came later. after a nice dinner with family and friends, the seniors gather again for the traditional faith all-night grad party. here, the seniors spend one last night together before they go their many different ways (many leaving as early as the next morning). the most infamous part of the evening is actually the morning. as the party ends and the crowd disperses, the tears start flowing. for the last hour or so, there isn't a dry eye in the place. as students realize they will likely never see many of their best friends again, all the emotions of their school experience come out all at once. again, i realized that i didn't have a context for this in my life. when i graduated high school, i went home, had lunch with my family, and went to work a few hours later, not really looking back at all. these kids have such meaningful relationships that leaving high school is an almost traumatic experience.


so here we are, the week after, eight weeks of vacation in front of us. we don't have much planned for that time. we will make one trip to the beach to do some diving with friends. i am writing a curriculum for a theology class that i will start teaching in august. we will spend lots of time in public places with aircon to avoid the heat and stifling humidity that's set in...