Tippecanoe senior awarded “Poet Laureate”
In the first year for the award of “Poet Laureate” at Tippecanoe High School, a successful student and senior at THS was given the title and the chance to read her poem during her graduation ceremony. After competing against her peers with her submission for the award, Lily Ares was chosen due to her creativity and writing skills, and she was acknowledged by the editors of Tippecanoe High School’s poetry and short story book, The Inferno.
Ares is not only honored to be the first student at THS to have received the award, but she is excited to read her poem at her upcoming commencement. Ares mentioned how her poem “I’ll See You In Ten Years” relates to graduation and connects to her peers. The young writer got the idea by diving into what life might be like ten years down the line compared to now. She highlights how things may be different, people will change, and routines will never be the same. However, there's a sense of excitement about that idea as well. Ares says, “I wanted to make it personal, but universal. Have pieces of my own life in it, but also something that everybody around me can relate to. I didn’t want the poem to be negative, but not overwhelmingly positive, either. I wanted it to be bittersweet so they could reminisce on our twelve years of good times but also look forward to a lifetime of new memories.”
After describing how much thought and creativity she put into the piece, it's clear to see why Ares won the title, which means a lot to her and her classmates to whom she speaks to on an emotional level. Ares has always been a literary person, and she’s been creating poetry for as long as she can remember. Her favorite part of the process is capturing and perpetuating moments and feelings on paper. She says, “The attention to detail and the little things are what I enjoy most.”
As the end of the year is quickly approaching, and graduation and the next ten years are heavy on her mind, Ares can look back and appreciate her small town and THS English teacher, Aimee Noel. Ares described Noel as the kind of teacher who was more than special. She felt like she was pushed to do her best in Noel’s class while also given the freedom to roam creatively in her writing. This, and her six pieces in the Inferno since her sophomore year, have molded her into the talented writer and speaker she is today.
There’s a lot of stress and uncertainty that pairs with the excitement of new life past graduation, and Lily Ares has not only captured that feeling in “I’ll See You In Ten Years” but has also captured the hearts and voices of her fellow graduates, making her the best “Poet Laureate” to kick off what is hopefully a new Tippecanoe High School tradition.