The End of a Five Year Journey

by Lauren Morley, Year 13 Student, Kaipara College

At the beginning of this year, I sat at my computer and wrote one of my favourite articles. It was entitled “A Year of Endings and Beginnings”. At the time, I was writing with a great feeling of excitement and anticipation for the future. It was the beginning of my final year of high school, a five year journey which had seemed to go by so slowly that being near to the end was such a relief. But now that it’s over, looking back, those five years went by faster than I could ever have imagined.

Friday the 27th of November, 2023, was my last official day of high school. During our last hour of school, all 100 or so year 13s gathered in an empty classroom. We all talked, laughed, took photos and enjoyed a lovely sausage sizzle cooked up by a few kind teachers and fellow year 13 students.

On Thursday the 2nd of November, we had our year 13 prize giving. Being able to sit back and watch as many of my classmates and closest friends received prizes and scholarships which they were so deserving of was such a special moment. I watched as our head students Bianca Bayly and Xavier Taylor addressed the cohort with beautifully written speeches, which so wonderfully summed up how all of us felt. Our Proxime Accessit, Sherly Peng, and Dux, Luca Donne, are two of the kindest and hardest working people I know, and I could not be happier for them.

With exams finishing on November 30th, we all have new journeys ahead of us. Some are jumping straight into the workforce, others are embracing adventure and traveling the world, and many of us, come February, will be taking our first steps as enrolled students into the hallowed halls of our chosen universities. I myself am moving to Wellington, and I am incredibly fortunate to have three close friends making that transition alongside me. However, it is a strange feeling knowing that I will be leaving many of my friends, my family, my house, my bedroom and possibly most sadly, my two cats.

I am incredibly grateful for the five years I have spent at Kaipara College. The teachers and staff I have got to know have been so lovely and passionate, and I look forward to keeping in touch with them in the future. I am lucky enough to have found some of my closest friends while also keeping many friendships I made in primary school. Like everyone says, it really is a bittersweet moment.

2023 Year 13 Graduates