Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
AS I write this, I am officially a high school graduate and what a feeling that is! I am in the midst of many emotions; sad because its is hard to leave 12 years of friendships and constant guidance; proud because I feel the accomplishments I and my peers have achieved; excited at our prospects and what the future holds for the class of 2009 yet scared at what the next four years will be like.
As I took a walk down the aisle one last time as a high school student, I could not help but reminisce on my experiences these past 12 years.
I have learnt academic lessons such as how to add one and one but more importantly, I have learnt valuable moral lessons and the true meaning of responsibility and friendship.
Let me take this opportunity to thank the various people who have helped my friends and I achieve the position we have arrived at today.
First of all, God the almighty, for leading us during our toughest times and being a sacred haven we looked to when in time of need.
My mother, who I hope I made proud, is up in heaven looking down on me and my twin as we take our walk as graduates. My father, without whose constant support and guidance I would not have made it here today.
Finally, let us not forget to express our gratitude to those teachers that have spent days and nights literally planning lessons for the next day, thinking about how they could change a student's life even if it meant praising an ugly drawing of a bunny during the second grade or carefully critiqiung a complex 1,500-word essay (Mr Stevenson I owe you my life for what you have taught me, you have changed my life and made my love for the English language grow so strong and therefore to you I say my biggest thanks).
Speaking of the past is now over, we must now embark on another journey towards the future; a journey that is not guaranteed, not protected and that no teacher or parent can guide us through.
We owe it to the many people, especially to our countrymen and our country, to rise above all expectations and lead in the fields in which we choose to exemplify our potential.
As I head in this autumn to Northwestern University in Qatar, I choose to do just that.
