As the graduating seniors at Lawrence High School lined up before Wednesday night’s commencement ceremony, there was a lot of the normal talk about where they were supposed to stand and exactly what they were supposed to do.

But many of the students already had their minds focused far into the future as they looked forward with anticipation about the next adventure in their lives.

Some had already lined up scholarships with plans to pursue college degrees. Others, like Felipe Avila, said they were looking forward to going to trade school, while his friend Alex Ayala spoke of plans to attend Johnson County Community College to study game design.

And then there were those like Calia Lowery, one of the two student commencement speakers, who has already decided to enlist in the Navy. Whatever their plans were for the future, Lowery urged them to go with enthusiasm.

“We’ve got to go out there and change lives, make magic and do extraordinary things,” Lowery said. “We’ve got to go out there and show them how great we are.”

Also chosen to speak was Sarah Smoot, who recalled that as small children, many imagined growing up to be cowboys, princesses or astronauts.

“Now some people want to be accountants, teachers – Lord help you – and parents,” she said. “Or, if you’re like me, you still want to be President of the Universe.”

But regardless of what they intend to do, Smoot challenged her classmates to remember that, “Growing up will always be hard. People will change. And even if you grow apart from your friends now, you’ll always make more later.”

Wednesday’s event was the 140th commencement ceremony at Lawrence High. In all, 356 seniors walked across the stage to receive diplomas.

And in contrast to the previous night’s graduation at Free State High School, the LHS ceremony often appeared more relaxed and informal, as students bounced beach balls around the field, and some friends and family of the graduates gathered as close as they could on the field to get close-up photos of their loved ones walking across the stage.

For many in the audience, it was an event long in the making.

Eli Todd, 82, drove to Lawrence from Kaw City, Okla., to watch his great-granddaughter Bethany Todd pick up her diploma.

“It’s great. I’m glad I lived that long,” the elder Todd said.

But for Milt Rawlings, who drove with his wife, Barbara, to watch their granddaughter Michaela Oxford graduate, it all seemed too soon.

“This is our third (grandchild) that’s graduated from Lawrence High,” Milt Rawlings said. “You think about how fast it went, especially after you’ve seen three of them graduate. It’s hard to imagine when you remember them as little babies, and they’re already graduating.”