Reflecting on an Unusual Senior Spring

It’s no secret that this spring has been different for many students across the country, and it’s been no different in McDowell County. One group of students hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic are graduating seniors, who haven’t been able to celebrate this special milestone together like other graduating classes before them. Now more than ever, messages of hope and togetherness are resonating with all of us. Two of our talented Student Pack members and Mount View seniors, Chloe Green and Miranda Osborne, have created a special song and video for their fellow students. We think their song and video will not only hit home for their graduating class, but for seniors across the country who haven’t been able to celebrate the way they normally would. Read their letters to their fellow students below and listen to the amazing song they wrote!

Chloe Green

In 7th grade I started to take an interest in video editing. I would go on YouTube in my free time and watch video edits and all I could say was, “I wanna do that,” and thanks to my dad, he bought me my first editing program to help me get started. I first took it up as a hobby, something to do with my free time when I was done with school work or just had nothing to do. Come 9th grade, nearly 2 years after I started, I said to myself “Hey, what if I was to go to college and make a possible career out of this?” Suddenly I was driven to improve my skills and become serious about editing, as I knew that with hard work I would’ve been able to achieve what I wanted to do. It’s been a blessing to be able to partner up with Miranda on this video project. Miranda is one my best friends, and I can tell y’all just how passionate she is about her craft and how driven she is to do her very best, whether it may be singing, writing, etc. She’s amazingly talented and I already know for a fact she’s gonna be successful in the near future. I can’t thank her enough for her friendship and her love, and for changing my life for the better. Miranda and I wanted to show this at graduation, but sadly, due to our current circumstances, that may not be happening for a while. Despite all that, I’m more than grateful to be able to have worked with Miranda on a video to go with the beautiful song she wrote. We hope you all love it as much as we do. Last but not least, to the Mount View Class of 2020: I’m gonna miss the times we spent together. Every laugh, argument, tears joy as well of sadness, I’m gonna miss it all. You all have my changed my life for the better, whether you know it personally or not. I know for a fact that all of you are gonna achieve your dreams in the future and make something amazing happen. Remember, the sky is the limit. I love you all, from the bottom of my heart.

Miranda Osborne

In 7th grade, I was asked to sing for the 8th grade class during their awards ceremony. I decided to write an original song, so it would be personal to them. The happiness I felt after giving those students their own song as a farewell gift inspired me to continue singing at Mount View. Not only did I sing for the home football games, but Christmas programs, Veteran’s Day programs, and even other class’s graduations. The more I sang for these events at Mount View, the more my true end goal came into view: to write an original song for my graduating class. From freshman year, I began toying with lyrics and melodies that I wanted to display to my class. Often, the initial lyrics were humorous and lighthearted, poking fun at students and teachers to give the audience a nice chuckle. However, as graduation grew closer, I realized what I truly wanted the song to be: a personal song from the heart that shows gratitude, yet feels bittersweet to hear as my class leaves Mount View. Once high school is over, all you have are the memories you made, so I thought that was the perfect topic (and name) for my song! I couldn’t have done this without Chloe’s help. She’s an amazing video editor and has a very bright future ahead of her. We first met at 4-H camp before middle school, little did we know the connection we’d have by the year 2020. We became very close through middle school and into high school, and we are living proof that even through hard times you can still remain best friends! I couldn’t imagine my life without her! I really wish the song and video could have been debuted during the originally scheduled graduation, but there’s only so much we all can do during this time. I have never worked together with someone to make a video for a song I’ve written, so this was a great, new experience for me as well. I am glad Chloe and I are still able to show our gift to the public for all to see and listen to as many times as they wish! This project has been very personal for Chloe and I, so we hope that connection comes across during the video. We sincerely hope you enjoy it! Finally, to the class of 2020, I love you. I genuinely see you all as a second family that has been with me since before we learned our ABC’s. We’ve seen everything and been through everything hand in hand. We’ve seen raging wildfires, the last presidential election, and now a global pandemic all during high school. Needless to say, we’ve been through a lot. We’ve talked about work, tests, and even exactly what you have to get on Mr. Hill’s tests in order to pass his class. We survived countless notebook checks, getting caught with our phones out, and getting yelled at for making TikToks during class. We’ve seen teachers come and go throughout the years, yet no matter what we stuck together like we were all we had. Above all, I’m thankful for the compassion and kindness this class has, as many of us have experienced it first hand. The passion and love for each other has been noticeable since middle school, and has only intensified throughout recent years. These memories of high school truly will stay in my heart, and I just wish we could’ve had one last day of school together to truly get closure. I mean it when I say I really am gonna miss all of you, even Sam messing with Hill everyday (and that’s saying something). You all will do amazing things no matter where you go in the future, I just know it. Go out there and be world changers! You got this!

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