This year’s senior class forecasts a tsunami of unity
Class of 2012, we have come a long way. Just three years ago, we walked into Langley High School on the Friday of Homecoming week filled with fearful anticipation.
In a new school with new traditions, there was no knowing the possibilities of what could happen to us. And now we are seniors, more unified than ever.
While we all have our varying opinions of Blackout Day versus Color Day, it’s undeniable that every year since our 9th grade, more and more black can be seen donned in the halls on the Friday that used to be notorious for chaos. That’s not the only new tradition.
We started the Saxon Tsunami, withstood freezing rain to show our spirit at football games, and for the first time ever, told freshmen to “stay here.” We forget sometimes that this is also our Principal Matthew Ragone’s “senior” year, and he is in full agreement that this graduating class has in fact become more unified.
“It was their choice. We may have had to ask them also, but they really had to want it for it to become a reality,” said Principal Ragone.
Principal Ragone and the administration cautioned the students on Blackout Day letting us know that we could do what we want, “as long as no one was excluded, assaulted, or treated negatively.” We were truly the last class to experience Color Day in all its glory, and even with this burdening legacy, we have still managed to come together as a class to make unity really stick, no matter what color.
We proved that tradition can be tasteful, because a red hair bow or a red bandanna coupled with a black shirt will never hurt anyone. Because we could switch to blacking out color so easily, we shook are heads at the underclassmen’s complaints of a loss of tradition. If we actually lived it and could still let it go, everyone else should be able to as well.
Not only did we go through a complete transition in our four years here, we set the stage and are challenging future classes to unify Langley as we have so far this year.. What’s the best thing about how far we’ve come? Our senior year is just getting started.