Everyone remembers the pandemic–ah wasn’t that fun?
When we spent our days huddled in Zoom rather than out in the sun.
The restrictions all loosened and some masks came down,
But I was glad Emily kept her mask with the best printed smile in town,
Some folks liked their pandemic pod so much they decided to move in,
Charlotte and Sidda are off to New York with adventures to begin,
This year everyone got to return to their favorite pre-pandemic ways,
Max just kept running, and running, and running for days,
Gage came back to play Russia brilliantly really owning the part,
Savannah G. returned to doing everybody’s astrological charts,
Chloe’s so funny she’ll sometimes veer a little inappropriately,
Nathaniel worked full time and finished school-basically more grown-up than me,
Kenny Nichol’s chill vibes brought us moments of Zen,
Duncan always saw things through his own unique lens,
Julia got back to being a great friend to all,
How great? I’m pretty sure she invited half of you all.
Emma McAdam returned to giving everyone hugs and spreading her joy,
Chris arrived back with all the best fidget spinner toys,
Aria got to get up on the stage and didn’t seem like a rookie,
Jerome started bringing everyone in school lots of free cookies,
Luke and the Gym Boys were back comparing arm veins in a weird kinda way,
In 6th period you could hear Lochlan exclaim, “Let’s go it’s leg day!”
Roman returned to the classroom and reclaimed a name,
Hunter is so unflappable he was just exactly the same.
Linnea could finally return to all her live concerts now,
I knew things were really normal when Baylee walked by and said, “Good *bleeping* morning, Mr. Dow.”
The fine arts just weren’t the same when you saw them on Zoom,
In person, Autumn’s watercolors can really light up a room,
Justice’s touch turns make-up into an art,
Rachael’s photography can see straight through to the heart,
Bianca’s creative writing is always the top
Regardless of medium, Erie’s an artist, full stop.
Holden’s love of music led to an Interlochen selection,
You didn’t hear it here, but Nino might be keeping beat for the whole string section.
I learned a lot from this class that I’ll treasure and hold,
Rini taught us all how to find your own voice and be bold,
My own dad said if I could learn Rejeana’s baking skills it’d be a real coup,
Ellis made me consider the navy from a completely new point of view,
Pascale brought in current events even I hadn’t heard,
On tech questions, Evan & Sebastian both had the last word,
Jeffrey’s pragmatism helped me remember this world isn’t the worst,
Isabella taught us all that family comes first.
Punctuality isn’t always essential-that’s Sterling’s tip,
Need to learn to dress well just watch Robby’s drip.
This class loves its animals it’s often been noticed,
Nika was always watching her dogs Rocky, Ruby, Mochi & Otis
Hailey kept Townmouse healthy with care round the clock,
Alex S.’ favorite animal? A Seattle Seahawk!
These seniors had big ambitions they went for the whole cake-not a slice,
Cameron traveled so big he practically flew to LA twice,
Emma K. completed the town’s largest mural like a boss,
How long was it? About as far as Tusker’s winning javelin toss,
Gabby and Jasmine H. got Redhawk Brew back up and ready to go,
They’ll have competition down the street from Sydney’s coffee empire though,
Madi is willing to laugh at anyone’s jokes like they’re a riot,
Macy’s voice is always biggest, especially when everyone else gets real quiet.
As a parent, I’ve known most of this class from way back when,
I still take credit for teaching Taj how to hold his first pen,
Logan M. was always the winner at any playground game,
And somehow Ike looks pretty much exactly the same?
Aurin I’ve been watching score buckets since she was a wee little person,
Grown up Grace is just as nice as the kindergarten version,
I met Moe at toddler times when we first moved to town,
Jeannette and Lia have always been winning the dynamic duo crown,
Jasmine M. always appreciates the little things others forgot to name,
Elio is surely in the Little Wings Hall of Fame,
For years, Mark’s always been smiling even when there’s bad luck,
And I’m pretty sure in 3rd grade Jesse already owned that truck?
Sage has always read tons from YA to rom coms,
Jazmyn T.’s been cheering since she was knee high to a pom pom,
From the day she was born, I knew Maya would surpass me in style & brilliance as she grew,
I didn’t suspect, not only would I love her, but she’d become one of my best friends too.
In sports, man, the respect this class demanded,
In tennis, Sophia could’ve won most doubles matches single-handed,
With Owen in baseball and Peyton in cheer,
They both made school sports family traditions this year,
Murphy played basketball and Savanna H. was a wrestling force to be reckoned,
Graduation might be the only reason Wilder’s not playing volleyball this very second.
With their future plans this class is ready to step out and soar,
Haven will be DJing while the dancing crowds roar,
Kenny M. and his talents are military bound,
Alex H. will undoubtedly make one of the best nurses in town,
Mason will be cooking up food we all love,
Rowan’s tattoos will take your coolness factor a cut above,
Blake will be serving up crepes from his food truck slathered in honey,
After UW business school Faye will go make that money,
Marcela will be working for Disney creating new LARPing features,
And I really hope someday Justin joins us as a teacher.
Thankfully this class got to live their last year of high school off of screens,
After a long weird high school ride with their classmate Covid-19,
I wish you stability and comfort in whatever future you find,
But know if those pandemic anxieties ever start to creep back in your mind,
Let your thoughts wander back to those moments between class when you could rest,
When 90s tunes cheered us up and Stegner fist-bumped, “Health Yes!”
And then take a deep cleansing breath, and let your old high school self go,
It’s time for the class of 2023 to step up and steal the show.
by Benjamin Dow