Parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts, relatives that weren’t invited but showed up anyway, I would like to thank all of you for coming tonight to honor the class of 2017.
I would like to welcome all the friends and family who are here tonight, and apologize to the faculty who have to sit through yet another graduation. Don’t worry guys, after tonight, you have another 365 days until the next one!
More importantly, on behalf of the senior class, I would like to thank every teacher, administrator and employee of Rockdale High School that has helped guide the class of 2018 through our time here. Your words of encouragement and determination in explaining what we actually use the quadratic formula for did not go unnoticed, even if we were too irritable to properly appreciate it.
I would like to personally thank Mrs. Darby for teaching me more about biology than a future journalism major would have thought possible, and for always keeping her door open to lend a hand, whether it was with schoolwork or simply listening to what I had to say.
I would also like to thank Mrs. Irwin for always knowing when I needed to be brought back down to Earth, and supported me to levels above and beyond those of a typical teacher when I had my head in the clouds. Although I only spent two years in her classroom, her impact is one that will last a lifetime.
I have learned many things over my four years, most of them from my favorite TV show “How I Met Your Mother.” The most important lesson was best stated by Lily, when she said “there are certain things in life where you know it’s a mistake but you don’t really know it’s a mistake because the only way to really know it’s a mistake is to make the mistake and look back and say ‘yep, that was a mistake’.”
While there are many who offer words of encouragement meant to inspire graduates and lead them to believe that they will transition into this new stage in life flawlessly, I am here to tell you that I am almost positive that everyone in this room will encounter setbacks, things that are not fair, things that are out of your control, and things that you may have accidentally caused.
I am also here to say that this senior class is full of individuals who know how to overcome these setbacks. So, as we enter into this new stage in life, I urge you not to be afraid of these inevitable mistakes. Instead, accept them, learn from them, and most importantly, grow from them. But, in the words of Chandler Bing,“I’m not so good with the advice. Can I interest you in a sarcastic comment?”
On that note, I would like to thank my parents who have not only instilled me with a sarcastic sense of humor, but a sense of self worth, integrity and work ethic that I know I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Mom, thank you for teaching me the true definition of retail therapy, and what it means to be a strong, independent woman. Dad, thank you for showing me that hard work and dedication to your goals will yield great things. I am so proud of your accomplishments.
I would also like to thank my siblings who never fail to make me smile, even when they talk about turning my room into a ball pit after I graduate. Lastly, I would like to thank my grandparents for always supporting me, no matter how far they have to travel to do so. I love you all.
Michael Scott once said “Sometimes I’ll start a sentence, and I don’t even know where it’s going. I just hope I find it along the way.” Both this speech and my time in Rock-dale can be summed up by this quote, I wasn’t quite sure where to begin, but now that they’re coming to a close, I could not have imagined a better journey.”
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