AKS

Here, is part a story I wrote during my senior year of high school, inspired by the Alaskan rivers.

On a quaint river bank, you can see the sun rising over the cascading mountains, as the freshly fallen leaves slowly make their way to the ground. The blue jays and cardinals start their melancholy song which is almost as colorful as the feathers on their backs, bright and fluffed in its own way that each bird will stand out when looking for a mate. They bob in and out of branches while chasing small insects that buzz through the sky like tiny cadets on a top secret mission. As the bright, blinding sun illuminates the river bank, you can see just how clear the blue water is all the way to the bottom of the river. The pink and white salmon swim rapidly up stream while the water fights against their every move. The fresh taste of dew and a tiny hint of pine feel the air as the trees begin to move and awaken with the light breeze that tickles through their branches. Right along the river bank, among the sand, rocks, and broken branches, is a small stone. It’s something you wouldn’t notice unless someone picked it up, threw it at you and told you to take a look at it. The small stone is grey, with a round, smooth finish that fits snuggly in your palm. It feels like a small ice pack against someone’s soft, warm hands. You can smell the hint of dirt and feel it when it rubs off against your palm. How could something so small and quaint, simply have so much detail in the palm of your hand?

The stone is something no one with the naked eye would notice, and even if one was staring directly at the bank. The first things you see might be the flowing water, and the sound of it gliding across the rocks, or the gigantic, lush trees that shade all of the small animals while they run about looking for food. You might even notice the large, jagged rocks, washed up along the banks that have been worn out by the water which has crashed and collided against it for centuries. The stone is so small and irrelevant to the big picture that it goes unnoticed. Such as the tiny ant hills that we sometimes step on while trying to find soft ground to walk across when we take walks in the grass. You might not even notice as the tiny ants scramble under your tennis shoes while trying to run for their lives. Their whole, organized and prosperous colony is destroyed, but we still go about our day and never know it even happened.

written by: Addison Sullivan

Hi. We did it. We finally did it. Through all the obstacles and setbacks, starting from the teacher walkout our 8th grade year, then a global pandemic that shut down the world for about the last 3, we’ve still managed to find a way to make it here tonight in our caps and gowns. I’m not sure how, but we did it. The last 4 years have led me to face some of my most difficult challenges, and without the support group and people I’ve had by my side for the last 18 years, I never would have been able to overcome the many challenges that high school has led me to face. I’d especially like to thank my family for making the trip and being here for me today, it really means the world. I’d especially like to thank my mom, who’s been there with me through it all, from changing my diapers, to helping me pick out my senior prom dress, my father who has pushed me to always be the best I can at everything I try, starting back in T-Ball when he told me to hit a baseball off of a tee straight between the eyes of a kid who was making fun of me for my small size, and my Grandfather who I have always had to give me advice anytime I may need help, no matter the time of day. Without the support of my family, I never would’ve accomplished the things that I can now proudly brag about to my Grandma Judy, in Clarksville, during the holidays. I have also come across many people here at SHS who have left a definite lasting impression on me. This last year, I had the honor of getting to take Mrs. Gibson’s 4th hour anatomy class. Even though I only knew her for 1 year, her kindness, sense of humor, and lightheartedness will always leave an imprint on me, and be the source of some of my best memories here at SHS. On another note, I know Covid has taken a toll on everyone across the globe, and especially on those who lost family members and friends during that time, but through adversity, the Class of 22’ was still able to achieve incredible things. Through athletics, academics, band, FFA, and all other organizations in school, we were able to show just what we’re made of. If I could take one thing that I learned away from high school, it would be to never fear a challenge and to rise in the face of adversity, whenever the opportunity may reveal itself. If you never try, you will never know what you’re truly capable of doing. Sometimes what we see as failures or setbacks, may actually be tiny blessings in disguise. I often struggled throughout high school. Not as a student, but as a teenager, growing into a young adult. One of the biggest lessons to take away from high school, in my opinion, has absolutely nothing to do with academics. Throughout high school, we learn who we are, how we want to be remembered, and who we are going to become. The choices we make, mold the paths that we take, so I wish the best of luck to the Class of 22’ and will leave you with one quote, which I would like to consider a family tradition. In the words of the wise Master Yoda, “Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.”

Addison Sullivan, Sallisaw High School Class of 22′