I'd like to start by thanking everyone who has come tonight, because without you we would never have made it this far.
It's been a long hard journey. Each one of us has gone through our own trials and tribulations. But the one thing that all of us have in common is that throughout the years we all had friends to share in the good times and the bad. Without friends this journey would have been impossible. Our friends gave us someone to talk to when times were bad, but most importantly they provided us laughs and many adventures.
Now that our high school career has come to an end we will go our separate ways. This however does not mean that we have to lose contact with those whom we have spent so much time with. To lose contact would mean to lose part of our past. That is why I am asking each one of those graduating tonight to stay in touch with those who have gotten us this far. There should be no reason to lose touch in today's world of technology. By staying in touch the good times will be remembered and hopefully new adventures will be explored.
The real message though, that I would like to leave to the class of 2006, is to undertake whatever your future holds to the best of your ability. I'm standing up here tonight, not because I am the smartest person, but because I took everything that school had to offer in stride. Even on nights when I wouldn't get home till midnight from sporting events, I still found time to finish my homework.
I guess what I am trying to say is, as we move on into the next stage of our lives we will be faced with even more distractions than we could ever have imagined. Up until now life has been pretty easy. But, now that we are moving into another stage of our lives we will be burdened with new responsibilities and commitments. If there is any hope for anyone of us to succeed at what we have chosen to undertake, we are going to have to stay focused and use everything that we have learned thus far. If we don't, the harsh reality of the real world will catch us with our back turned. We will never have the slightest clue what hit us.
In my life I will encounter many obstacles, but my experiences will help me find a way around them, or if necessary, over them. I will always be influenced by the past and the past is what has made me who I am. Every word that I write with feeling, and every poem or quote that touches my heart, whether it be good or bad, will always stay with me. The words that I live my life by now may not always express who I am, but they will always be a part of me because they have helped make me who I am. Words are strong, but life is stronger. I will never lose my true self in other people‘s footsteps, and that is why the road less traveled has made all the difference in my life.
Class of 2012, we've finally made it, but not without the help of our parents, teachers and mentors along the way. Maybe what they did for us was that they were a good rudder and we're the ship, and they got us to the sea where we remember who we are. Because we all get in that fog, where we forget who we are or what we're about, we get overwhelmed. I mean I've been there plenty of times in my life. But we're not going to remember most of our lives until the end. But we will remember certain moments. Maybe it's our first 4.0 report card, maybe it's our first 100 percent biology test, maybe it's our first homerun, our first touchdown. Whatever it may be, it will stay with us forever. Many of us have been together through elementary, middle and high school, and we have all had to work hard and remain focused to be where we are today. All change happens in a minute. Your life changes in a moment. Something triggers you and you finally make a decision and it all shifts. As years go by, your body is going to change, your relationships are going to change, your attitude is going to change. Change is automatic, but progress is not. Our progress has brought us here tonight, and tonight will become one of those moments that we will cherish forever.
No amount of education can completely prepare us for the world that lies ahead of us. Because it presents many unknowns, it is exciting yet at the same time frightening. I know that there are still so many things that can only be learned through experience; a challenge with which we will soon all be faced. I would like to read a letter written by a woman by the name of Avril Johannes which was published in the book "Chicken Soup For the Soul." She writes this letter to the world upon her son's and his classmates' graduation and it relates some of these same ideas.
When I was asked to be your commencement speaker I figured it was my responsibility to say something so significant that it would help you make sense of what you have experienced over the last two years. I figured that I should answer one of life's great mysteries that you may have been confused about. And I am prepared to do that today. The question is, we have been dealing with them, writing papers about them, but what in the world are these Learning Outcomes anyway? And why have you made us study them?
...ere he found his supper waiting for him and it was still hot." It is now time to step out of high school and enter a world of choices. It is time to leave "where the wild things are," taking our experiences, memories and knowledge and follow our hearts and dreams. It is time to give thanks to all who have supported and helped us down this path. Thank your friends for being there for you, thank your teachers for preparing you, thank your parents for guiding you and thank all others who always made sure your supper was still hot.
Students, faculty, family, friends, on this exciting day, I speak to optimism, laughter, and grins.
Over the past year or so some dreadful events have occurred at high schools, alarming the American public while they have talked about increased security, clinging to images of guns, blood and typical-looking teenagers committing unthinkable crimes. The media has focused on these incidents without giving attention to all of the potential and talent that is flourishing throughout our high schools. I invite them to recognize the inspired pupils who are propelling themselves beyond standard and motivating others around them. That is what I want the American public to be talking about.
Invited back to my alma mater, Fair Avenue Elementary, I was asked to say a few words, any words, on high school and graduating.
The first thing that I will miss when I graduate from high school are my friends. My friends and I have been with each other since the seventh grade, and we have done almost everything together. We have procrastinated together, whined about the load of work assigned to us, and studied last minute for tests. There is no other group of friends that I would rather be with than them. I have seen all of us
Being Marefat's first graduating class to complete all four years, one can say we've acquired a higher level of school wisdom than any previous class. We've formed traditions, we've set records, and we've made a lot of friends along the way. I remember our freshman year when we could use the excuse of being a new school for every shortcoming we encountered. I remember our sophomore year, the last time I cleaned my bedroom, when Marefat had its first senior class, and the school seemed to shrink for some reason. Last year we were the juniors, and we conquered the SAT tests: And made it through those busy days where you hadn't quite found room in your schedule to pencil in a bathroom break, dinner or sleep. Well, this year we were the kings and queens, there was Star Wars, Starbucks, and a certain football team lost its winning streak to the mighty Knights. Looking back we can see our accomplishments and the marks we made. Now, we must take all that we have learned in our years at Marefat and apply it to our future. Just as we have set traditions here, we must enter the world ready to tackle new problems and work out new solutions. We are the ones who can break all of those records that have been set, and have our names etched in history. It's our turn -- the world is ours and we just have to decide what we want to do with it.
Let me begin by saying that I am very honored to be addressing the County High School Class of 2012 as students of this institution for the last time. We've spent these last four years creating some serious memories: four years of chieftain power, leaking roofs, questionable Homecoming skits, and musical principals. Four years of good teachers, bad teachers, new teachers, old teachers. Four years of youth, music, growing up and breaking free. Four rubber chickens, four yearbooks, four ASB presidents and four chubby bunnies.
Class of 2012, as we sit here this evening, I would like you to take a look at the classmates sitting around you. Many students have given countless hours of time, energy, and passion to worthy cuases that they have been a part of throughout high school. However, those aren't the only students deserving of recognition this evening. We have students here tonight, who have taken a stand for what they believe in, not even hesitating to compromise their reputations.
To begin something new, you must sacrifice something old. To enter the real world, you must graduate your childhood.
Good evening parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, and friends. I would like to thank you all for coming to this very special day. I know how proud you must be. As we have grown over the years, there are many stages we all have gone through. From learning our shapes and colors, to getting our first kiss in middle school, or how about explaining to our parents why we skipped school because the principal called home. As we remember these days, things that we've done will be with us forever. But this is only the start of our journey. The day has come where we say goodbye to the big yellow buses, assemblies, assigned seating, and attendance policies. Are you really gonna miss it? For some of us maybe not right away. But eventually we will so for us to be here it is not necessarily an achievement, but a privilege. All of us have been in school over half our lives. To graduate is one more step we've taken in our lives.
Graduation: the last day that I would unwillingly set foot on the fields of Horizon High School. I could feel my heart beating out of my chest, and tried so hard to keep my feet moving one after the other in order to maintain my perfect stature. After the two hour wait of opening speeches, class songs, and the calling off of the five hundred plus names that were in front of me, it was finally my turn. As my row stood up and we walked towards the stage it had set in at last, this is it, I am done. My high school career ended on that night, but it didn’t close the book that is my life, it only started a new chapter, and with it came a whole slue of uncertainties.