Monument Mountain Grads Prepared For Life, Not Just College

	Monument Mountain Regional High School held is 2015 graduation exercises at Tanglewood in Lenox on Sunday. See more photos here.

LENOX, Mass. — Monument Mountain Regional High School's 125 graduates crossed the divide between high school and all that lays beyond with jubilation on Sunday – jubilation, confidence, and even an air horn or two.

Beach balls and balloons flew over each maroon-and-white capped head between the encouraging speeches as the class of 2015 laughed their way toward the next chapter of their lives. The band ushered them to their seats at the Shed at Tanglewood with the classic "Pomp and Circumstance," and the ceremony began with a musical rendition of the "Star-Spangled Banner" – which some audience members chose to sing along to.

But the kind of fun had by the graduates of the Great Barrington school was the kind that only comes after a time of long, hard work – there was the sense of a collective exhale as the once-serious students saw their efforts come to fruition.

"We made it!" said valedictorian Meghan Cum, as she encouraged her classmates to "look around" because it would be the last time they would all be together at the same place and time and she was enthusiastic about "catching this moment" in time.

"Monument is a special place," she said. "It is a breeding ground of innovative students and dedicated teachers; Monument works hard to prepare its students for life, and not just college ... I've grown not only as a student, but as a person as well. These people have taught me humility – I've learned to laugh at myself [and] they've showed me how to open up and be myself, and how to enjoy life."

"[I'm] going to miss this feeling of being part of the class of 2015. It's a subtle feeling – it's this sense of connection."

Salutatorian Jordan Begley offered the graduates a simple formula that she called the "foolproof, guaranteed recipe for everlasting happiness."

With a dry wit, she outlined the "four steps" needed to achieve that goal: lower your expectations, do things that don't matter, do not recognize what is most important to you – and (most importantly) don't listen to her. She garnered many amused chuckles, but the explanations behind her words of wisdom were practical suggestions that moved beyond the traditional content of commencement speeches.

She advised her friends and classmates to go outside their comfort zones, explore things they might never have attempted before, and find their own ways of moving through the world.

The tone sobered a bit as Berkshire Hills Regional School District Committee Chairman Stephen Bannon addressed the graduates and advised them to "not look back with regrets, [but] look forward with anticipation."

He also reminded them to appreciate their families.

"They are the ones who drove you to those events that go along with growing up; they are the ones who gave up numerous nights and weekends for you; they are the ones who helped you get through those rough days when you wanted to give up because things were tough; they are also the first ones to applaud you when you did well."

A proud Principal Marianne Young led the presenting of diplomas, and had a few last words of encouragement and praise for the class of 2015. Then, with killer whale balloons flying among flung caps, the triumphant class made their way out of the Tanglewood shed having earned every smile – and there were many.

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