Life seems to be full of those, and as you get older, they just come faster.

I’m saying goodbye to my formal Jewish education, and hopefully saying hello to work days and paychecks.

There was a certain safety and comfort that came with school. Despite my frustration and anger at times, it never wasn’t there. All I had to do was show up. It was never really up to me to screw myself over.

Now I have that power and that responsibility. It’s up to me now to put all those dreams and plans into actions, to follow through with my past self.

Most of the people I know are sad, clinging to the last moments of childhood, holding onto that string that held us up.

But I can hardly wait.

All these years I’ve been learning how to fly, where to fly, when to fly…

I’m excited to finally fly.

And fly farther and higher than I knew I could.

I’m excited to see how much I can do, how much imagination I can translate into real life, and how much little me can change the world.

I’m not even an optimist, and I believe that even I can change my corner of the world just a little bit.

I’m excited to be challenged, to be faced with situations in which all I have been learning becomes relevant, I am excited for real life.

So, there may be a tiny piece of sadness somewhere deep in my heart as I realize I am saying goodbye to scheduled recess and a built in social life. But the excitement far outweighs that.

I know that as soon as adulthood really starts, the excitement might wane a bit.

But I also know that I’ve been lied to- the best years are yet to come.