An eight-hour trip to New York with over 20 high school students is bound to contain chaos, but somewhere between the pit stops and playlist battles, I found myself in a conversation with seniors Joy Nadda and Rayna Panikulam that made time stand still. We talked about the moments that feel straight out of a coming-of-age film – senior sunrise, college decisions, beach week – the big, cinematic beats that make high school feel like something bigger than it is.

There was nostalgia in their voices, but also something heavier, something that made me wonder: Does looking forward make the inevitable look back sting all the more? If we spend four years building a highlight reel in our heads, does the final cut ever live up to the dream? And more importantly – when the credits roll, are we left with memories or just the ache of what’s over?

Memories on devices live in internal storage, and it’s nearly the same for our brains. At the end of each year, everyone gets a yearbook to flip through – a glossy, curated time capsule of the school year. But the real yearbook, the one that matters, isn’t printed. It’s the book in your mind, filled with photos you’ve taken and events you showed up to, the places that left a mark. And just like internal storage, those memories will stick, the ink won’t fade. Years from now, the things you thought you’d forget could come rushing back when you least expect it. “Going on trips with the a cappella group and going to football games with my friends are some of the best memories I’ve made. It makes me sad I won’t experience them again, but It’ll impact me for the rest of my life,” Nadda said.

There’s another reason why the end of high school stings – it’s not just the places or the moments, but the people you choose to share it with. The friends that you make along the way, whether you’ve known them since freshman year or they showed up in the last few months, are a part of the ride. These people are woven into late night FaceTime calls, the inside jokes and the little traditions that only make sense to you. And after graduation, whatever path everyone chooses to take, most people won’t be in arm’s reach by the fall. Hangouts at Fallsgrove and after school study sessions will die down. It’s hard to admit, but it’s reality. Despite having one last summer to soak it all in, graduation feels like a bittersweet, slow goodbye. “With my buddies, I like messing around, laughing at everything, joking around with teachers and skipping a class here and there just to chat with them. What mainly makes it worse is that these people are tied to my senior year and my school experience, so leaving also makes me feel like I’m leaving these people,” senior Max Hammerman said.

At the end of each year, everyone has a personal anecdote to share. And no matter how it ends, the final chapter of senior year always stings – especially if you’re someone like Nadda and Panikulam, showing up to football games, school plays and every big senior event. But here’s the thing: it’s worth it. Every memory and “remember when” moment gets burned into that internal storage, shaping the person you’ll be next fall, next decade and beyond. So don’t let the fear of goodbye stop you from living the moments that matter. If it hurts, it just means it meant something.