Sunday evening, a crowd of eager students strolled in meticulous lines into a room in Cromwell Auditorium flanked with faculty, fellow students, and alumni. Dressed in formal outfits and eager to carry out this long-awaited tradition, the juniors at The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science entered into a ceremony synonymous with the entrance into their new school. The lights dim. In the next hour, four candles are lit. Each luminous object signifies the key ideals MSMS beholds: community, creativity, scholarship, and service.

The Ceremony of Lights is an annual event that carries a significant degree of importance. It serves as a marker of the beginning of the school year, where all students gather to exchange best wishes, recite the MSMS pledge, and belt out the “Alma Mater” with pride. It is an extremely private event. Only esteemed guests, faculty, and students are invited to attend.

Returning graduates from MSMS are asked to speak on one of the four key ideals. Mrs. Jameela Williams, an alumna and new physics teacher, spoke on scholarship. She urged students to continuously expand their minds and seek out opportunities. Ms. Katie Howell from the Class of 2012 read an excerpt from John Donne’s “Meditation XVII” as she discussed community.

Current MSMS counselor, Dr. Heath Stevens, expressed the importance of service.

 “Service comes in many different forms,” he said.

Finally, Ms. Forrest, a graduate of MSMS and current lawyer, spoke on creativity, reminding students that this quality is just as vital to success as each other ideal.

While every ideal varies in nature, the ceremony proves how important a role each plays in life at MSMS.

“The speakers talked about lasting bonds,” Junior Erin Williams recounted. “I’m really excited to start forming those.”

A common thread uniting each ideal’s testament was this familiar bond. As students from the Class of 2017 reunited and hugged their friends and seniors congratulated their junior friends, the sense of community was prevalent. This event proved to be meaningful not just for the incoming class of juniors, but for each student, past or present, attending the ceremony.

Current senior, Devon Matheny, said, “The ceremony means so much because I got to watch the juniors experience exactly how I felt last year.” It is a time of recollection and reflection. As the juniors rose from their seats in unison and piano music flooded the room, each student collected a small piece of the puzzle. This keepsake, with the ideals etched into the fragments, will serve as a reminder of the importance every piece of the puzzle has in an enduring opportunity for excellence.