I would like to begin by thanking the people responsible for today, our family and our faculty. From our parents who have supported us around every turn, to our teachers and administration who work tirelessly in our favor, to our uncles by marriage who only came to the state for an excuse to see Mt. Rushmore, I would like to sincerely thank you. Every member of the audience not wearing a cap and gown should know that you have made it possible for us to sit, smile, and let you do all the work.
Fellow students of the class of 2015, we're here. We have worked hard to overcome the obstacles that we have all faced throughout our high school careers. Some of us have undergone personal hardships, many have taken a class that threatened a timely graduation, and all of us have stared down the nightmare that is the senior experience. Seriously guys, a graduation speaker makes a joke about this every year, take the hint.
Today is not a day to dwell on hardships though. Today is a day to smile in triumph. The purpose of high school is to prepare us for whatever our personal future may be. This is a scary time in our life, and our difficulties are just cause to be anxious. It makes me long for the days when everything could be fixed by animal crackers. I remember one time I was scared to come to school, so my mom kissed my forehead, and gave me some animal crackers to make it all better. And then I got in my car and came here.
We are all going through a lot of changes, and all kidding aside, that change is terrifying. But that change is good. Change is what moves us forward. Change is the force not content to watch others do great things, but insists that is must also be us.
Before me I see doctors, I see entrepreneurs, and I see teachers, but more than any profession, I see a whole lot of uncertainty. According to cliche I'm supposed to tell you to spread your wings and fly, but maybe your future doesn't involve flying. Our class quote from Abraham Lincoln says "Whatever you are, be a good one." If you are a bird, please fly; however if you are a horse run, and if you are a fish swim... Because if you don't you'll probably die.
Wherever your life will take you, get there in your own way, because you are the only one who can take yourself from this ceremony to wherever you want to go. I personally plan on rolling out of the parking lot in the new Camero I know my dad is going to surprise me with. What's that? No Camero? That was a joke everybody, get it? What I meant to say was that I will leave these halls with my head held high, proud of the accomplishments I have made, and confident of the twisting, turning road before me.
This is our commencement ceremony because this is where our greater journey commences. All of our roads are leading to different places. Some of us see a clear path laid before us. Some of us know our target, but not where it is located. Some of us are just going to wander for a while. Wherever we go, one thing is certain, by the time our ten year reunion rolls around, we will all have some great tales to tell. Wherever your road is going, make the best of it; because the story always continues, and now we all have the tools to be our own authors. Class of 2015, congratulations.
