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More handpicked essays just for you.
Personal growth personal narrative
Personal growth personal narrative
Personal growth personal narrative
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Over the past four years, we have grown from insecure, immature freshmen to successful, focused and confident young adults. This incredible transformation has been the result of our entire high school experience. Everything from that first homecoming game, to late night cramming, to the last dance at prom. These experiences have pulled us together as a class and we have learned to love and respect our fellow classmates.
As much as this class has grown together, every one of us has also grown as a unique individual. We have found our talents and interests. These interests have drawn us to different activities and in turn helped shape our lives. Some of us have excelled academically while others have helped improve Summer High School by participating in activities such as Link Crew or ASB. Some of us acted in plays while others shared their musical talents by singing in the choir or performing with our outstanding band. Many of us have preferred to be involved in community service with a group like KEY Club. In addition to these school activities, many of us have invested time in jobs and other community activities.
These many choices have shaped who we are today: the people we met, the experiences we encountered, the lessons we learned. They have all made an impact on our lives and, in turn, we have also made a difference in the lives of others.
The people sitting out in this audience tonight have also greatly impacted our lives. Every person in this enormous stadium has given us encouraging words, helpful advice or tough criticism. The support our family, friends and teachers have shared with us is invaluable. Their caring and dedication have helped us get here today.
Being involved in school and community activities should not be a way to impress colleges or keep oneself busy to simply avoid boredom. Having a pure, unselfish need to help others in any way possible is the real reason anyone should be involved. Many times in life, people take what they have for granted. Cecilia Ahern said, “Time cannot be packaged and ribboned and left under trees for Christmas morning. Time can’t be given. But it can...
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!
Students, faculty, family, friends, on this exciting day, I speak to optimism, laughter, and grins.
Are we there yet? Have we reached our destination? We've been traveling for 13 long years. We've only had a few brief rests along the way. We're tired and we're cranky and we just want to know, are we there yet?
Who can forget being a freshman: finally out of middle school, we took on the world in a school of 1,400 that was only suited for 900. We've sat in not only moldy portables but also condemned bleachers, seen rusty water, squished together in the gym to display our spirit and learned what it means to truly work hard. We took the challenge presented to us and chose to succeed in one way or another. Whether on the playing field, in the classroom, with an instrument or in the community, the launching of our high school career began our journey and began the adventure to become our destiny.
As I look back upon the past four years, in some ways it seems like my time at Kiper has been a lot like a day at the Magic Kingdom.
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 would like to thank all of you for coming on such short notice. After all, 18 years hardly seems like enough time to prepare for graduation. In fact, as I stand up here and looking at all of my classmates, I wonder if I am ready to graduate.
Congratulations everyone, congratulations. If you're participating in this graduation ceremony, you've taken the next step toward your future goals and dreams. For those of you that just finished your transfer degrees, congratulations. To those of you that came back to school after a few years off to get a better education, congratulations. To those of you that came to get a certificate or learn IT or computer programming so you can get a better job, congratulations.
The great big orange doors. The doors that we have grown so fond of during our four-year stay at Tropics High School -- the cafeteria doors. In an attempt to get to the Commons a split second faster than the person next to you, how many times have you opened those orange doors so hard and fast that you've gone BAM! and heard a response of a groan ... OW! Then in reaction to the yelp, you turn to see a boy with a freshly swollen red spot right in the middle of his forehead. "Sorry," you say with a cheesy grin and you skidaddle away as fast as you possibly can. You never see this boy ever again, except in the most random places and though you don't know his name, you'll always remember to never open the big orange door so fast and so hard ever again. As insignificant as he was in your life, he has taught you a lesson.
Class of 2012, tonight is the last time we will share together for many years. After tonight, we will begin a new chapter in our lives. This chapter will lead us away from each other, but the memories we've shared will continue to stay. The years behind us have been full of challenges and rewards; these experiences will be there to guide us as we branch out into the world.
You know, it is really strange how quickly time passes, after spending my whole childhood wishing I was an adult, now here we are and it's a little hard to grasp. It feels like just yesterday I was standing here in the same position at eighth grade graduation. Ahh, middle school, such a joyous time for all of us, free of maturity and not a care in the world. The biggest decisions I ever had to make then was deciding which group to stand with at passing time and choosing which shirt from my extensive collection of Stussy and No Feat apparel to wear. We were all naive to the danger that lurked just around the corner. We were unaware that the carefree world we lived in was about to come crashing to the ground in a blazing inferno of real school work and responsibility ... otherwise known as high school.
As freshman, we came home from school with the mentality that we were no longer children, but rather had entered into a new stage of life. Everything seemed different and new; we weren’t the big kids on campus anymore. We no longer were the persons being looked up to, but rather were the persons looking up to an entire school of older students. We remember joining our firsts clubs, going to dances, and having Orientation days.
Good evening everyone. My name is Toyota Moko, and I am an international student from Japan. As the first-ever international student speaker on commencement, I am very honored to be here tonight to be given this opportunity to speak on behalf of the graduating class of the 2003.