When seniors think about graduation, they think about college, maybe a career in the armed forces, or maybe just going straight into the workforce. Many of these seniors have goals such as the goals that Carson Berry had as a senior in 2011.

“My goal after high school was to pursue theater but I eventually dropped out [of theater] because I got a girlfriend and we moved in together,” Carson Berry said. “I can basically say that I’m living the American Dream. So I guess I did accomplish my goal.”

Graduation for seniors may sound exciting, but when they get to that stage and are about receive a Diploma, they’re nervous. For Berry, he actually believed the opposite of graduation.

“Graduation wasn’t very likely for me because I missed a ton of classes, back in my day being a teenager was hard,” Berry said. “Passing classes wasn’t the hard part, it really was getting to class and I did theater.”

Even though life in high school can be hard, it’s harder in the aftermath.

“Since 2011, I moved out of my parent’s house, I got my Associate’s Degree, my proudest accomplishment is not having any debt,” Berry said. “I have a car that is paid off, an apartment that I can keep up with, and I have an awesome girlfriend. My hobby is converting old game console to everyday objects, like a GameCube that is now a tissue box. I now am an Assistant Manager at Carmike Cinemas Yorktown 15.”

As our seniors prepare to leave us and chase their dreams, here is some advice for them.

“Grit isn’t something you can learn in school. It is only something that can be learned by trial and error and it will be your best asset because it will be the determining factor if you succeed or fail,” Berry said.