With the exception of longtime teachers and school administrators, there is no more expert observer to the yearly rite of high school graduation than the seasoned community journalist.

It is not unheard of for a reporter to cover three or more of these ceremonies in the frenzied month of June, when seniors from schools across southern Maine take turns filing through Merrill Auditorium or the Cumberland County Civic Center or the local football field. One can expect to hear dozens of farewell speeches.

So as an annual tradition, Current Publishing’s editors and reporters reach deep into this well of accumulated knowledge and produce our own commencement advice (and we don’t even quote “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!”). Here it is, for the class of 2012:

Ask questions: You’ll run into a lot of people in life, and for the next few years in particular, most of them will know a lot more than you do. Treat every encounter as a chance to learn something.

Make friends: People like to call high school “the best years of your life,” but that’s not true. It’s the four years after high school when you’ll make the friends and memories that will last a lifetime. Find people you can trust to be there when you need them. If you are going off to college in the fall, you’ll likely do some great things in the next few years. But you’ll also do some dumb things, and you’ll need good friends to help you through.

Turn off your phone: It’s easy to get hooked on that little screen. Fight the urge to check it every few minutes. So please, keep the public phone conservations to a minimum, and no texting or scrolling when someone is sitting across from you trying to speak.

Spend wisely: It doesn’t sound very exciting, but there are few things in life as important as good credit. Whether it’s a car, an apartment, a house or some unseen emergency, you’ll eventually need to spend big on something important, and a good credit score will make things a lot easier.

And, lastly,

Plan ahead: Don’t worry so much about the 18-year-old you. Instead, focus on becoming the best 25-year-old you can be. Life can get really interesting at that point, once you’ve started to figure out who you are and what you can be. So get ready. Be curious about life and open to its possibilities. Try and fail. Read books, watch movies and go to museums. Explore new foods and talk to people from different backgrounds. Do things you’ve never done before, and don’t worry about looking nai?ve or silly. You won’t regret it.

Ben Bragdon is the managing editor of Current Publishing. He can be reached at bbragdon@keepmecurrent.com or followed on Twitter.

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