As we get increasingly closer to the next chapter of our lives, murmurs of wanting to “get out of this town” from seniors permeate the halls. Everybody is understandably excited to move on and leave the same old environment they’ve been in much of their lives. However, I don’t think their focus should be on leaving their town. Afterall, towns are replaceable, but the people in them? They’re not.

Movies and TV shows may make it seem that the high school experience is defined by the fun things you do, whether it be the greatest skip day of them all from “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” or any of the over-the-top parties from “Riverdale.”

But that’s not reality.

All throughout our lives we will attend events and do interesting things. But at the end of the day, what truly matters from these experiences are the connections and bonds you make with the people around you: the car karaoke with people you hardly know who will become your closest friends in the next two years, the quiet personal conversation on the way to track practice with an old friend you had lost touch with or the third yearly tradition with the people you love the most. These moments are what will stick with you, not which team won the big game, how hard the run was that day or what exactly happened that time two years ago.

In the next stage of our lives, whether it be college, service or wherever the world takes us, we’re going to be surrounded by new people and before you know it some of them will play a huge role in your life. It’s going to be easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of the new and start to forget those you left behind.

Don’t let this happen.

You don’t have to dwell on the past the rest of your life, but don’t forget about the people around you that you couldn’t imagine your life being the same without. These people have a larger impact on your life than you realize and you’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you lose all connection and don’t stay in touch. Way down the line when we’re proper adults, not just college students, many people in your current circle could become lifelong friends.

This next chapter in our life isn’t going to be all sunshine and rainbows for everybody and your friends may need you to be there for them, even if it is only over text. Everybody is uncertain about where we’re going in life whether we admit to it or not, and having that dose of familiarity is going to be far more valuable than we can imagine.