I’ve spent weeks trying to think of what it is I’d like to share with you on this special morning… what words of wisdom I could possibly impart, what bits of knowledge I have obtained during these past five years that I could share. And after careful deliberation and consideration, I came to the conclusion that I have absolutely nothing to say. I’ve asked several people, "So, like, if you were listening to a speech, and, like, you wanted to enjoy it… what would you want to hear?" And these several people all had the same reply, "Don’t be boring." So, that was a really big help. I refuse to start out with some sort of typical, "My fellow graduates…" introduction, and I’ll be gosh-darned if I start with a quote, like, "As Shakespeare once said…".. Basically, I realized that I’m walking away with a degree in Physics, and I cannot compose a simple graduation speech. Someone needs to explain to me how I can complete five years of college and leave here incapable of delivering a simple speech. I’m a little bitter. The problem is that I’m not sure whether the lessons I’ve learned are the types of things you talk about in a speech like this. Most of the graduation speeches I’ve heard seem to be along the lines of, "You are the future! You are the promise of tomorrow! Dream and you will succeed!" And that’s really great; those are nice things to hear. But I can honestly say that I have never reached a difficult moment in my life and then thought, "I didn’t know what to do, but then I remembered something my graduation speaker once said, and everything fell into place!" So, I’m not here to give advice, and I’m not here to impart words of wisdom, and I’m not here to inspire you to succeed. I would just like to wish you all the good and... ... middle of paper ... ...ied to. Waking up five minutes before the alarm is supposed to go off. Missing your flight. Spilling your drink. Breaking a dish. Arguments over stupid things. Sunburns. Saying goodbye… You may never be a CEO. You may never win an Oscar. You may never sing at the Met. You may never get married and have a family. But this is your story. That’s it. One shot. Feel it all. I don’t have the faintest idea what’s going to happen, and I think it’s great. I’ve spent five years trying to figure out what I should be doing the moment this ceremony is over, and I still don’t have an answer. And that’s okay. In fact, it’s perfect. If we knew life’s outcome, what would be the point of going through it? It’s a story, and it’s yours, and whatever happens just make sure you feel your life. One shot. My fellow graduates, as Shakespeare once said, "The readiness is all."
I did not want to sound too nostalgic since I’m not the emotional type, but I also did not want to come across as indifferent. It was a difficult task, but I knew I could accomplish it. A week before the banquet, the senior cheerleaders were given the task of writing speeches about their coaches and their teammates. I am not the kind of person to voluntarily put myself in a situation where I have to speak in front of others.
As our time together draws to a close, I leave LHS with no further anecdotes of wisdom or quotes dealing with success; only the sincere hope that you immersed yourself in the essence of commencement. Everybody, we’ll all be graduates by the time we leave tonight. Let’s enjoy it. Congratulations to the Lee High School Class of 2006.
These last four years have been rough on me but luckily there have been some lessons learned through it. I have just looked forward and moved on to greater things in life. I leave behind the bad and move on to the good. A good quote to describe my adventure through high school is when Jeannette is talking to her mother. The mother says, “ Things usually work out in the end,” to where Jeannette replies, “What if they don’t?” The mother answers with, “That just means you haven’t come to the end yet.” The quote describes my struggles in life and also brings hope for a happier
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.
This speech is bigger than me... bigger than this graduating class... and the world surrounding us. It is an epiphany. This speech is for the little guy, the middle man and the guy who is always behind the scenes... For the past four years, we have seen stories, read newspaper articles, and have heard announcements about our star athletes, scholars and over achievers.
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote, "You are a very special person - become what you are." These words encourage us, the graduating class of 2012, to recognize the goodness and potential in each and every one of us and to go out and excel in the world. We are a diverse group of different aspirations and backgrounds, bound for different corners of the earth to carve out our won individual niches. Before we leave behind Lee Falls High School and each other, we must ask ourselves how we have become who we are.
The end of my first graduate school semester leaves me with a bittersweet feeling. Although I'm glad that the stress and pressure of continuously feeling unprepared to take on graduate school is now over, the feeling that I can successfully accomplish my goal and become a School Counselor seems more attainable. Working towards something I feel passionate about, and coming to the end of the beginning of a long journey has never felt so satisfying. What feels even better is all of the knowledge that I have acquired about the profession which society needs in order to function in times of despair. During our very first class we were asked about, “Our life’s motto?” From this day onward and after listening to the different perspectives, backgrounds,
“Progress looks like a bunch of failures and you 're going to have feelings about that because it’s sad but you can’t fall apart. And then one day , you will succeed.” (Grey’s Anatomy) It is the law of life that significant events will occur throughout a human’s existence on Earth. We exist, survive, and thrive because we are able to change. With that in mind, I am grateful for all the opportunities that have and continue to be given to me despite my past failures,lack of inspiration and confidence.
Executive speechwriter Anthony Trendl once wrote “A commencement speech, simply, is an opportunity to share your experience, values and advice. The precise form is up to you. This affords the speaker a platform to say amazing, unlimited things.” Steve Jobs’ Commencement address to the graduates at Stanford University was delivered on June 12th, 2005. Jobs is well known for being the CEO of Apple Computer, Pixar Animation Studios, and the inspiration of many rising entrepreneurs. In his speech, Jobs makes it clear that his delivery will be outlined by three short, but important stories pertaining to his life experiences. Each story contains one or two main lessons intended to help these Stanford Graduates as they move on into a new world. Jobs’ over all speech structure, sense of wisdom and experience, topped by his widely recognized success, empowers his speech to be strongly convincing. However, with the happily ever after stories, promises in leaps of faith, and ideally controversial context with college graduates, the speech seems to be a bit less relatively persuasive .
Commencement is a critical juncture in our lives; it is a momentous occasion where we believe we are about to start anew. However, graduation is the bittersweet moment where the forces of past and future are simultaneously acting on us. Consequently, the past is not dead. Alfred, Lord Tennyson, suggests that our past experiences will be with us forever as he states, " [we] are a part of all that [we] have met; yet all experience is an arch where through gleams that untraveled world." That is why graduation, similar to other turning points in our lives, possesses two halves, which accentuate each other. We are looking forward, but the "arch" of experience beckons us to remember, value, and learn from our past experiences. Thus, I feel that in order to appreciate commencement fully, we must remember our own past, and in particular, the last four years:
This really stuck with me because I sometimes get frustrated easily which is not a good thing. Like Randy said, everyone has a good side, we only have to be patient enough with them to see it. Brick walls really are there to be broken down and I feel like the only brick wall that can stop me is myself because I know that if I put my heart to anything, I can get it done. I think the fact that Randy one of the reasons randy became a professor is to help people achieve the childhood dreams. I think it is very important to help people in this world because when you help people, they will remember you forever and you would have made a positive impact on their lives. Even though I do some charity work at my, this speech has inspired me to even do more to help other people. Even though I don’t plan on being a professor or being in academia, I plan to help make people’s lives better if I don’t help them achieve their childhood
I consider Steve Jobs’ commencement speech at Stanford University in 2005 to be one of the most effective speeches. He uses mechanics of speech to craft a well-rounded speech that is crowned by his use of rhetorical devices. Jobs gives relevant and fundamental knowledge of his life and experiences with his rhetorical approach. In his speech to the Stanford’s graduation class, he tells different stories of love, loss, discovery and difficulty he faced in his life to encourage new graduates as they continue to mature in life. He encourages students to pursue their dreams and not be discouraged by failures they might experience in life.
One thing that I never thought about is how it would be sad to leave my parents. At the end of the ceremony, deep in my heart I felt very sad. I looked at my parents and when I saw my mother was crying I felt like my heart would burst. I realized that starting tomorrow I was going to be without my mother. I thought how it would be hard to say goodbye to the home where I grew up in.
Graduation is an exciting time in a person’s life, especially a high school graduation. When I think of family and friends gathering together to celebrate a joyous occasion, I feel I accomplished my strongest goal. It never occurred to me that graduation would be the end of my youth and the start of adulthood. Graduating from high school was an influential event that gave me an altered outlook on my existence. Life before graduation, preparing for graduation day, and commencement day overwhelmed me for reality.
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.