Oh, the places they’ll go

Deepa Bharath

“C’mon guys, it’s the deal of the day -- taking pictures,” said proud

Newport Harbor High mom Cheryl Ball on Thursday afternoon as she held a

camera in her left hand while motioning her graduating daughter’s friends

to pose for a snap with the other.

“It’s just so emotional,” said Ball, choking up. “I’ve seen some of

these kids grow up, some I know from the time they were in preschool.

“Today is their reward for four years of hard work.”

Newport Harbor High School’s class of 2001 lined up on the school’s

tennis courts dressed in dark blue gowns and caps, their tassels swaying

side to side.

It was a bright, breezy, beautiful day they will remember for the rest

of their lives as the day they graduated from high school.

Best friends Tanya Burak, Nichole Love and Nicole Matten were showing

off their caps, each bearing two words written in glitter that made up

the phrase, “The 3 Peas In A Pod.”.

“We’ve had such a fun time,” Love said. “And right now I’m nervous and

excited and sad. This is our last day together.”

Matten said she learned some important lessons in high school.

“I really learned how to deal with other people and grow up in the

real world,” she said.

The excitement of treading into the unknown is indescribable, Burak

said.

“Till now, it was like we had a routine to stick to,” she said. “From

here on, it’s like whatever -- we don’t really know.”

Love plans to major in psychology at Sonoma State University, while

Matten and Burak will go to Orange Coast College. But before they go

their separate ways, they plan to have a blast by themselves on their

three-week vacation to Cancun and Italy.

Rex Adams and Nick Dubesa will head to Maui with their families for

the summer, where they are sure to bump into one another.

“I’m glad high school is finally over,” Dubesa said. “I look forward

to the future. I know it’ll be tougher than high school, but it’s also

going to be a lot more fun.”

Adams said his biggest high school challenge was “dealing with

teachers.”

Now that school’s over, he’ll concentrate on other things.

“I’d like to do a lot of traveling in the future,” he said. “Europe in

particular.”

Parent Jamie Deyden, who was waiting to cheer daughter Heather, said,

to her, the day means her daughter has taken one more step in life and

“she’s not a baby anymore.”

“It’s a little scary but also exciting,” she said. “I just want her to

be happy, to be able to wake up every morning and be happy with the

choices she makes.”