5th May 2025
Sophia read her winning entry to the School:
Before The Flag Falls, by Sophi H
I’ve spent my life counting,
not test scores, not trophies,
but tiny, weightless things:
the breath before an answer,
the glances across a corridor,
the last few steps up tired staircases.
One year left.
One year to stand where we’ve always stood-
suit jackets slipping from shoulders,
ties loosened after long days,
assembling on Monday mornings,
half-listening, half-hoping.
Two more assemblies to end a term.
Two more times the hall fills with restless waiting,
two more chances to sit still
and pretend we aren’t already halfway gone.
Three seasons left to live through—
Michaelmas rain, Lent frost,
Summer light through open windows.
Six lessons a day,
and still no one teaches you
how to hold a moment tight enough
to stop it slipping.
Five assignments left.
Five late nights,
five more evenings lit by laptop glow.
Six coffee runs between lessons,
six different ways to say “I’m fine” when you’re not,
six bursts of laughter that echo longer than the bell.
Seven chances left to say “thank you”
and really mean it.
Eight pens rattling in a clear plastic bag,
waiting for the moment we know is coming.
Nine exams to sit through,
nine deep breaths we won’t even notice.
Ten thousand thoughts we’ll never get to write-
and then:
“The exam is over. Put your pens down.”
We’ve heard it before.
But next year, it will echo.
Because next year, it will mean:
You did it.
You’re free.
You’re no longer here.
The corridors will fall silent without us,
ties packed away,
the flag-
once held steady-
lowered slowly, carefully,
without a sound,
except maybe the sound of hearts breaking
a little.
One by one,
we’ll shake the Headmaster’s hand,
and somehow know,
somewhere between first bell and last goodbye,
we grew up.
So I keep counting-
the jokes whispered,
the glances shared,
the mornings that seemed endless,
the moments I never thought
would have an ending at all.
Because these aren’t numbers on a page.
They’re the seconds that changed us.
The life we built together.
The growing up we didn’t notice happening.
And if we’re lucky,
we’ll remember to count it all-
before the flag falls.
Sophia H