Thirteen years of schooling - can you believe it? And we, County High Class of 2012, have made it! We're graduating! There may have been times when it was tiresome, frustrating, stressful, demanding, even physically, mentally and emotionally draining! Through the years I have felt all of these emotions and more, but one thing that has really kept me on the top has been my ability to smile. I have found that smiling, even when it seems too hard, helps to solve all kinds of problems. Not only does it improve your own attitude, but one smile affects an incredible amount of people. Think about it - if I were to smile at just three people in a day, each of them will probably smile at three people in the least, then those people will pass the smile on, and so on. It's like a contagious epidemic. That's what so intriguing about it!
One quote that will always stick out in my mind is from Ms. Marris' "Quotes of the Day." Mort Walker said that "seven days without laughter makes one weak." Since you cannot read this quote, I need to tell you that weak is spelled w-e-a-k; this makes a difference if you were thinking w-e-e-k, because it is a fact that seven days make a week, but seven days without laughter makes you weak. Laughter is captivating - not only does it feel good outside and give stress relief, but there have been proven health benefits from laughter keeping with the old saying that "laughter is the best medicine." So don't be too stressed, find something to smile or laugh about! Don't get offended easily - be the kind of person who won't let another bring them down. Just "kill 'em all with kindness!"
I hope that as each of us go our separate ways - whether it be off to college at BYU, UW, Western, Chicago, Boston or ECC, working or jumping into a family, that we will continue to live our lives with values, with integrity. Integrity to me means having the moral courage to do what you know is right. Found in the Holy Bible, Job proclaims: "Till I die, I will not remove mine integrity from me." To the religious and the non-religious alike, this quote can be admired and sought for in ourselves. I have many values and things that I know to be true, and I hope that I can have this integrity of Job to stay strong and true to what I believe - as I hope you all do in your own beliefs and endeavors.
When I was in elementary school, I loved to read. I was a total nerd back then ... okay maybe I still am, but one thing has changed. Now I don't so much like reading. My favorite poet was Shel Silverstein, who wrote "Where the Sidewalk Ends." He seemed like he was a total hippie, but that's cool because I like hippies. My grandma is a recovering hippie. I like her too. Anyway, Shel Silverstein wrote about the coolest things. He wrote about magical erasers, eating whales and a boy with long hair flying away from people who were taunting him. He captured all of the things that I loved without knowing that I actually loved them. Now you may ask, how does this hippie relate to our graduation? Well, he wrote a poem entitled "Traffic Light" and this is how it goes:
Good evening. Some of you out there may not realize this but those of you who attended Suntime Middle School have been with this guy for the last seven years. I would like to ask you all, not just Suntime Middle School grads and who all else, to join me in thanking Mr. Weather for his patience and dedication to the success of our education over the years. We are the Class of 2000. The first graduating class of the new millennium. The past four years have been pretty wild. We started out as a bunch of rats in a small cage, but as time went by we learned and matured and became big rats in a new small cage, but in any case, the cage door is now opening; the handlers turning us wild things loose. As we leave "Where the Wild Things Are," home to some of the best cat fights, fist fights and food fights this side of the Cascades, I have a little surprise for all of you sitting in front of me here tonight in your caps and gowns … we ain’t seen nothing yet!
According to Professor Benjamin Lahey “one effective way of dealing with stress is to remove or to reduce the source of stress from our lives” (564). In the article he mentions
When I feel stressed, I listen to my favorite music on my iPod or play my one of my favorite computer games. This is my way of zoning out and just forgetting about everything around me. It relieves my anxiety and the stress of the day, and it helps prevent burnout. In addition, I need to make sure I take time for me to be with friends and not forget to
Don't let your stressful situation devour all the happy things in your life. Defeat it and enjoy life to its
It is probably a mistake that I am standing here giving a speech for graduation. In fact it is probably a mistake that I am even graduating from this school at all -- believe me, just as most people in this class I have tested the limits of attendance, of sleeplessness, and of procrastination. At the beginning of my high schooling, I was even testing dropping out ... and if that wasn't a mistake, I don't know what was. After four years of Starr altering our minds, it seemed most fitting for me to spend my four minutes talking about mistakes. Thank goodness for them, by the way -- it is only when we truly screw up big time that we are ever stopped in our tracks -- stopped, briefly, to learn lessons of worth.
I was puzzled and wasn't sure what to talk about tonight. I had to prepare this speech ahead of time and turn it in for approval. I much prefer doing things spontaneously, using all the skills I have developed over the years, you know, sorta letting people (being the teachers and parents) know that we really were listening! It's much more fun interacting with other people, watching their reactions, and playing along with them. But, I had to do the right thing, So while I was contemplating my topic, it came to me - this is what I want you to take with you as we depart the Bryan Station School District and move on into life.
Attention Getter: Life is like a huge roller coaster, a journey full of twists and turns, and ups and downs. And sometimes in this journey there arises various situations where one is unable to deal with these turns, let alone have the energy to face the ups and downs. In situations when the downward spiral becomes difficult to overcome it seems to linger on and on. The major cause of such feelings, are the chaotic activities of life. Stress is no stranger to our daily life. Stress in its severer form can lead to everything that we care about and love become strained and puts a burden on our physical and mental health. Therefore, we must take a hold of our stress, hang on to life and practice helpful techniques to vanish these stressful dilemmas. When we understand our situation, the better we will be able to get through them with ease.
Never forget to laugh. "If you can laugh at it, you can survive it" (Cosby). Life is difficult for everyone. It is how people deal with these strives and struggle is what matters. Sometimes, the best way to get a break from the hardships of life is to simply laugh with friends and family. It’s a Balance process. Some people can be caught up in life’s problems and forget to laugh. Laughter is the mental medicine for life. Laughter supports the health of the body. Laughter can break up the quietness in a room. Laughter can change the room from black and white to a rainbow of colors. Laughter is a result of looking at something in a positive light. Is the glass half empty or half full? Whatever the circumstance, never underestimate the power of a good giggle. Never forget to laugh.
Find healthy ways to cope with stress, such as exercise, meditation, or spending time with people you care about.
Ok, its 12:15 and I just walked into my house from seeing a movie with three of my best friends and I have to write this speech. A speech that’s suppose to inspire all of you, and tell you how the future has so much to hold for the class of 2015, how the possibilities are endless. Right now I’m probably standing in the front of the class and supposed to be addressing all of you as “fellow graduates, or to the class of 15’”. But that’s not what I’m going to do. I put this off as I do with the majority of my work thinking I would just write something everyone expects to hear, but instead I wrote this.
Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Sitting in the backseat of the car, I used to bombard my family with these questions. On our summer road trips I was so anxious for the destination that I failed to appreciate the journey. However, as time passed and I grew older, I realized that it was the journey that was important and not the destination.
Hi, my name is Pat and I would like to start today by thanking the seniors of 2012 for choosing me to speak today. It is truly my honor.
To begin something new, you must sacrifice something old. To enter the real world, you must graduate your childhood.
Modern life is full of troubles, frustrations and deadlines. People have to suffer stressful from many directions and they seem to be consent to live with stress. Many people think that they can stand with stressful and it is harmless, but it is not. If people live in stress during a long period of time, it has bad effect to health and spirit. Therefore, there is actually that you can protect yourself by understanding stress and how to reduce these harmful effects caused by stress.