Recently it was the last formal day of school for our granddaughter, Keely. One of the customs for the Year 12s in their final days at Keely’s school is re-modelling their school uniforms into a fashion item … Our first reaction was “What? They trash a decently good item of clothing just because it is the end of school?!”

Then, I remembered, oh yes, we did pretty much the same thing 35-plus years ago. We didn’t remodel our uniforms, which is rather creative, but wrote messages to each other on our uniforms on one of our last days before the final exams started.

Remembering this made me drag out the box of old high school paraphernalia to find the signed uniform and read over the messages.

I found the uniform amongst other bits and pieces from high school days. I daresay I could finally discard the old sports day programmes (I never featured highly in these, and who held the shotput record back in the 1980s is probably not high on anyone’s research agenda). I will still keep some of the other various newsletter clippings and so on for a little while longer.

Tom often comments that he regrets not having his old reports from school days. I’ve kept mine, but I’m sure there is not a lot beyond a personal sense of nostalgia in keeping them. I’m sure Keely, or the other grandchildren, will be quick to discard them in a generation’s time.

Any merit in keeping them for the school archives? Unlikely, there are sure to be others that have been kept and donated. No doubt digitised for future generations. I did, however particularly like this particular report card from Year 10 (1982). Unfortunately, my dislike for getting changed for PE and actually doing sport somewhat ruined the overall balance of the assessment, don’t you agree?? If only you could get assessed on watching cricket (doing the scoresheet, maybe???).

Reading through some of the kept items and trying to decipher the now somewhat blurred messages written in Texta on the old uniform, I recalled friendships now moved on – some no longer in touch, some rekindled via social media, some still strong despite the passage of time.

On those last days of school, I wonder who of us expected to be living overseas? Interstate? Married? With kids? Divorced? Running businesses? In the Olympics? Nursing? Teaching? In politics? Managing and influencing others? Bringing joy to many lives? I’m sure we all had dreams, and perhaps it has not always turned out exactly as each of us expected.

I know in my case I am grateful for all these school memories, and the journey life has taken since. Lasting friendships – life is good!

“We must now look to the future not dwell in the past – only remember with fond memories, because life holds so many possibilities.” Words of wisdom – written by bestie Eliza on the reverse of my school uniform belt.

As you leave school, the world is truly yours. I hope Keely and her classmates will also look back on these days with the fondest of memories and look forward to the many possibilities ahead.