It’s that time of year across the Snoqualmie Valley: high school graduation. As seniors get excited to put on their caps and gowns, parents are reminiscing with conflicting feelings of excitement and sadness.
In my book, the cliche “Where did the time go?” is perfectly acceptable this time of year because it really does feel like you were just registering for them kindergarten; they were starting middle school and then high school.
It’s the time of year where all the memories come flooding back as the child you guided for 18 years prepares to toss that graduation cap and move on to the next phase of their life – a phase where much of it does not require your constant guidance.
Parents, you did it. And know they will still need you… just in a different way. Your job is not done, just changing. They will still need your guidance, your home cooked meals, to hear you voice. That will never change.
So reflect, be proud, enjoy and celebrate your graduate… and if tears fall, let it be also with a smile.
Congratulations Class of 2019 – graduates AND parents. Here is a look at some of the history that shaped their world and journey to high school graduation.
Born When
- George W. Bush was elected
- Movies like: Remember the Titans, The Emperor’s New Groove, Erin Brockovich, and Miss Congeniality were released
- Demi Moore and Bruce Willis got divorced
- Wikipedia launched
- Netherlands became the first country in the world to make same-sex marriage legal
- Lizzie McGuire premiered on Disney Channel
Learning to Walk and Talk When
- 9/11 happened
- Leaning Tower of Pisa reopened after working 11 years to stabilize and keep it from falling over
- First iPod was released
- Serena Williams beat Venus Williams for her first Wimbledon singles title
- The Mars Odyssey finds signs of water ice deposits on Mars
- Kelly Clarkson became the first American Idol
- Cristiano Ronaldo made his Premier League debut for Manchester United
- U.S. invaded Iraq
- the Human Genome Project Completed
- Movies like: The Lizzie McGuire Movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Holes premiered
Potty Training When
- Two classic Christmas films, Love Actually and Elf, were both released
- U.S. forces captured Saddam Hussein
- Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook
- Friends series finale aired
- The CIA admitted that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- Janet Jackson’s famous wardrobe malfunction happened
In Preschool When
- a 9.3 magnitude earthquake created a tsunami causing devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Maldives and edges of the Indian Ocean, killing 230,000 people
- Green Day released “American Idiot”
- The Boston Red Sox won the World Series for the first time in 86 years
- Hurricane Katrina devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast
- YouTube launched
- Lance Armstrong retired after winning his 7th consecutive Tour de France
In Kindergaten When
- WikiLeaks was launched by Julian Assange
- Steve Irwin died after being pierced in the chest by a stingray while filming an underwater documentary
- Nintendo released the Wii
- the Virginia Tech shooter took over 30 lives
In 1st Grade When
- Amanda Knox’s name started dominating the news
- Keeping Up With The Kardashians premiered
- The Marvel Cinematic Universe released its first film, Iron Man
- the Writers Guild of America 3 month strike shortened seasons for many popular tv shows
- Heath Ledger died
In 2nd Grade When
- The U.S. stock market crashed
- President Obama was elected
- “RuPaul’s Drag Race” premiered
- the Swine Flu epidemic hit America
- The first “Twilight” movie premiered
- Michael Jackson died
In 3rd GradeWhen
- Avatar became the highest-grossing film of all time
- An earthquake in Haiti killed approximately 160,000 and destroyed the majority the capital, Port-au-Prince
- The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded causing a massive environmental disaster
- President Obama signed into law the repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”
- Toy Story 3 premiered
In 4th Grade When
- All 33 miners from the Copiapó mining accident were rescued after surviving a record 69 days underground
- Taylor Swift released her album “Speak Now”
- Prince William and Kate Middleton got engaged
- Adele released “Rolling in the Deep”
- Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. special forces
- The first episode of “Game of Throne” aired on HBO
- Instagram was launched
In 5th Grade When
- One Direction released their debut album
- Long-running soap operas “One Life to Live” and “All My Children” air their final episodes after 40+ years on air
- The world population reached 7 billion
- Snapchat was launched
- The first “Hunger Games” movie premiered
- “Veep” premiered on HBO
In 6th Grade When
- Despite predictions from the Mayan Calendar, the world didn’t end
- Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast
- A school shooter killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School
- President Obama defeated Mitt Romney and was re-elected
- Disney bought Lucasfilm for 4 billion dollars, getting the rights to “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones”
- Bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon
- Pope Francis became the new pope
In 7th Grade When
- “Frozen” was released
- Lorde released her debut album, “Pure Heroine”
- The Seahawks won the Super Bowl
- Jay Leno left the Tonight Show
- Malaysian Airlines Flight 370’s disappearance prompted the most expensive search effort in history
In 8th Grade When
- Jon Stewart announced he was leaving the Daily Show
- Gay marriage became legal in all 50 states
- Zayn left One Direction
- Malala won the Nobel Peace Prize
- Taylor Swift officially went from country to pop music
- Sony was hacked
- ISIS became enemy #1
- Bill Cosby’s history of sexual assault allegations came to light
Freshmen When
- Stephen Colbert began hosting “The Late Show”
- Queen Elizabeth II officially became Great Britain’s longest-reigning monarch
- Barack Obama became the first U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928
- The U.K. voted in favor of Brexit
- Beyonce released “Lemonade”
Sophomores Grade When
- Donald Trump was elected president
- The Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the first time in 108 years
- Harry Style’s released his debut solo album
- “Wonder Woman”, the first female-directed superhero movie, premiered
- Mother and daughter Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds died within one day of each other
- Ariana Grande hosted a benefit concert, One Love Manchester, in response to the bombing at her Manchester concert
- Millions marched worldwide in the Women’s March
- Colin Kaepernick first knelt during the national anthem
Juniors When
- Twitter doubled its character limit
- The New York Times published an investigation of Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assault/harassment
- The internet exploded with #MeToo stories
- Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got married
- Tens of thousands worldwide participated in “March for Our Lives” and nationwide school walkouts to demand stricter gun control measures
- Beyonce became the first black woman to headline Coachella
- Childish Gambino released his widely acclaimed video for “This is America”
Seniors When
- Bill Cosby became the first celebrity to be jailed for sexual assault in the #MeToo era
- “Veep” and “Game of Thrones” aired their final episodes on HBO
- The Woolsey Wildfire destroyed hundreds of Malibu homes
- Ariana Grande released her popular music video “Thank U Next”
- The Oscars aired without a host
- Luke Perry died of a stroke
- Christine Blasey Ford testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee about her sexual assault allegation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh
- The first ever photo of a black hole was released
- Paris’s Notre Dame cathedral caught fire, destroying the roof and its famous spire
- The old Mount Si High School would house its last senior class
