The school year is quickly coming to an end, especially for seniors. Senior year can be quite the challenge when it comes to making sure you’re on the right track for planning your life after high school. Just thinking about it right now gives me a headache. But what most seniors have in common is that we want to graduate and celebrate.

After the graduation ceremony, most students commemorate this milestone by throwing a graduation party with their family and friends. Some may say that graduation parties are a waste of time and money, but they got it all twisted.

We students have to endure all the pain and suffering for 12 stinking years with all these standardized tests and built up stress. The least that can be done for us is a party to acknowledge the hard work we put in.

Now, this might be quite the shock to some people, but a graduation party doesn’t have to be some extravagant event.

Think of it as a birthday party. Some are small, intimate gatherings at houses while others involve renting out venues and spending money on decorations and food. Not all graduation parties have to be the same. If your family is willing to spend money on a celebration, then so be it, but it’s not a requirement to spend a lot to have a fulfilling graduation party.

It’s also a great opportunity to see your relatives that you haven’t seen since you were “this big.”

I don’t know about you guys, but I love it when I get to see my distant family members and celebrate with them.

It’s also a great opportunity to receive presents. It’s common courtesy to bring a small gift to a party that you are invited to. Graduation parties are like baby showers and birthdays loosely combined; you get presents from your friends and family that are meant to help you in the future. Now if this doesn’t persuade you, then I don’t know what else would.

Graduation parties are not for everybody. You may be the type of person that attends graduation parties instead of hosting them, and that’s okay. But even having a small graduation party with some of your friends and family members would be worth it. High school is hard and as graduating seniors, we owe it to ourselves to celebrate.