Hi! It’s me!!! Lily!!!!

I didn’t post yesterday!!!

Okay, so yesterday, we had our “graduation”.  We had it in the shop, and a bunch of people came that I didn’t know.  All the sudents wore formal oufits, the girls with frilly dresses, the boys with suits and ties.  They had a nice ceremony where we all got “diplomas”, etc.  And then the idols came up, along with Beth, and they started singing graduation songs.  Like “Sakura no Hanabiratachi”, “graduation toss”, etc.  I don’t know where Beth (and the idols) got the time to practice all of that, but she sang it flawlessly!  The idols didn’t really sing this time, but they danced around.  The lyrics were translated on a projector.

It was surprisingly…  tearful, actually.

“Sakura no Hanabiratachi” gets me on the best of days, and Beth singing it while actual Japanese idols were dancing was.. kind of surreal and really emotional.

I’m graduating.  I’ve graduated.  I’m out of high school now.  I’m going to college. I…  I’m scared, a little.

Okay, a lot.

Graduation is a little bit like a little death, I think.  One of those smaller deaths that you experience throughout your life until you go through the actual big one.  You get a lot of those deaths… and a lot of those births too.  Because very time something dies, something else is born out of it.  That’s just how the world works.  My high school career is dead now, it died, and graduation was a funeral, a memorial to that death.  But it was also a celebration of new life, of moving on to the next big thing.  I’m going to Japan for college, and only in a few months too.  Seems like yesterday it was eight months out.  Now it’s three or four.  It’s coming fast.

Beth has become a surprisingly good singer.  I don’t think she wants to make it a career but she’s really learned to belt it out, and has surprisingly good vocal control.  I’ll be proud to accompany her on her upcoming recital.

She’s definitely better than the idols.

She can’t dance worth crap though.

She was wearing a slinky black dress too, with some fur around the neckline, black stockings, high heels… and an updo in her hair… she really is beautiful.  I think I’m pretty.  I think the idols are pretty.  Beth is something else.  She’s the whole package.  I’m surprised she doesn’t really have a boyfriend yet, but…  she seems to want to wait for the right one.  I don’t really blame her.  She’s dated a few times, and they only really seem to want, well… not her mind.

I remember when she was an awkward thirteen year old who hated me.  And now… she’s almost a grown woman.  Can you believe it?

Allison’s birthday was a few days ago.  I didn’t really get a chance to do anything because I was so busy.  But happy belated birthday, Allison!!!

Anyway… today…. we all went to the waterpark.  Just like Sabby promised.  I haven’t been there in a while, and it was nice to take the idols along too.  We all had fun!!! They forgot to bring their swimsuits, so we took them to get one first.  Everyone was turning heads.  Especially because I think some Japanese folks decided to make a weekend of it and a few of them were at the waterpark.  They got semi-mobbed.  Not to the point where it was inappropriate, but they certainly had to say hi and sign a few autographs.

I don’t think they minded.  Reminded them of old times, I guess.

Now we’re all exhausted.  All that splashing and sliding and stuff is hard work!!!

They’re leaving in a couple of days.  I’ll miss them.

Love you all!!! ❤️