Tweet

An open letter to the class of 2020:

We were brought into this world in a time of uncertainty, a time that will forever be cemented in our history.

September 11th, 2001, the day our futures would change before we could even speak.

Eighteen years later and we are leaving high school during a worldwide pandemic. Our entire lives from the start to the present day have been historic. Our parents brought us into a world full of the unknown after the terror attacks of 9/11, and one of the most important parts of our lives, our senior year of high school, is being shrouded by a foreign conflict, not with another nation, but a microscopic enemy.

This was our year, walking into 2020, how many people said this is my year? 

Senior Year, an emotional roller coaster of tests, college applications, figuring out what you are going to do for the rest of your life. A time in our lives where we face something we never had to really face before. The last time. The last first day, the last play, the last race, the last time stepping onto the court or the field, the last time walking through those doors, the last last day. The year filled with lasts, supposed to be filled with celebration and emotions, moving onto the next chapter of our lives, never forgetting the memories along the way. This time seems shadowed by the rest of the population, a time they can’t relate to because they aren’t us. They aren’t the class of 2020. They had their time, or they will have their time.

This is our time. 

Our lives have been shaped by historical events that kids 50 years from now will learn about. Whether it be the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, an 8-year war that had an estimated combined 650,00-2.4 million fatalities, one of the biggest divides in politics in recent history, being on the brink of World War Three, and the COVID-19 virus. One thing we have learned in the past 17, 18, and 19 years of our lives is that we are the next generation. The Class of 2020 among the other great generations, falling into the Gen Z. category, will never give up, and will never fall into the hands of the machine. We are the next soldiers, political leaders, doctors, welders, labormen, the next to change the country and change the world. 

To my fellow classmates, we will do as we have always done. Look adversity in the face, link arms, and march on. Together there is no limit to what we can achieve. A class like ours has seemingly outdone ourselves over and over again, making strides in the classroom, on the field, on the court, and for our community. 

With all that has happened recently, you probably feel a whirlwind of emotions, and it’s like nothing we have faced before. Whether it be conflict happening locally, nationally, and globally we will always have each other. The Class of 2020 will always be the Class of 2020, an elite club of incredible individuals who, when they come together, can and will change the world. We have already made it into the history books by playing the hand we were dealt and making the most of it.

 An open letter to my class, our class, the Class of 2020. Never give up, be there for one another, be there for your loved ones, do what we do best, and persevere at all times. This is when you have to appreciate those close to you, all the memories you have made, and everything that has made you who you are. Despite what’s happening in the world around us, as it seems it is crumbling around us, we can do this. We can make the best out of nothing. We will make the comeback.

If there is one thing I have learned about my classmates, our classmates, it’s that they will never roll over and quit. To the Class of 2020 don’t stop till the bell rings.