On November 15, senior superlatives came out after months of nominating, voting, and waiting. From the moment the initial email was sent asking for nominations, the senior class of Bedford High School was abuzz with excitement. Then, when the second round of voting commenced, the class was on pins and needles, and it’s understandable why this iconic tradition is so important to America’s youth; it’s the legacy each individual in the graduating class has a chance to leave when they are no longer here. Whether your class deems you “Best to Bring Home to Parents,” pays homage your “Best Laugh,” or honors you as “Most Musical,” it’s something for you to be remembered by.
With that being said, some people this year thought that the superlatives handed out seemed a little bit too bland; they’ve all been used before. And while a sense of sentiment accompanies following traditions, maybe these traditions have worn themselves out. I think we can all agree that it would have been a lot more interesting, funny, and impactful if the yearbook was littered with ironic statements and acknowledgments personal to this school, rather than what’s been seen one hundred times.
For example, would you rather vote on “Who’s the Biggest Chatterbox” or “Who’s Most Likely to be Behind ‘BHS Breaking News’,” the infamous Twitter page? Would you rather wonder who’s the most studious, or who’s most likely to break their neck walking down to junior lot during the winter? Every school has superlatives, and besides the faces and the names, their yearbooks tend to be identical, so why not make our yearbook unique to the place we have spent hours, weeks, months, and years in?
The possibilities are endless: Honor iconic BHS landmarks (whether some of them are real or not is up for debate) with “Who’s Most Likely to Get Lost in the LARP Castle?” or “Most Likely to Look for the Pool on the Fourth Floor.” Acknowledge the school’s apparent inability to stay quiet with “Who’s Been Kicked out of the Library ‘Silent Study’ Area the Most?” Pay tribute to historic BHS events that have happened through the years with “Who Should have Replaced the DJ at Prom 2018,” “Who Got Triggered the Most Over ‘Go Home Freshmen’,” and “Most Likely to Have Been One of the Clowns During the Clown Terrorism of 2016.” And lastly, what would this list be without an honorable mention to BHS’s #1 sport: “Most Likely to Skip Class for a Spikeball Tournament with all the Sophomores in Bulldog Corner”?
Instead of emphasizing what makes our classmates unique from one another, let’s instead focus on what makes this school different from all the others. You only get one high school senior year yearbook, so let’s make it count. It might be too late for the class of 2019, but class of 2020, take notes. You’re up next.
