grad speech
by: me..
I was going to try out to be a commencement speaker, but I backed out at the last minute. I never wanted to be a speaker, I just wanted to try out so I would have a better chance to be a "distinguished writer" and have my speech published in the program. Well, here's the speech:
Have you ever had those moments in your life when you sit and wonder, “How did I get here? Is it just me or did time fly by?” This is one of those moments, graduation. 14 years of schooling has all amounted into these next two hours, walking across that stage and receiving that long awaited diploma. June 19, 2007 marks the day we have finished a large portion of our lives. It also marks the start of a new adventure.
Graduation, just the word gets you excited. It means so many things – achievement, success, end, beginning, opportunities. Can you believe we’ve made it this far? We’ve gone from getting a “way to go!” stamp on a spelling test to a 5 on an AP test (well, maybe a 3).
I, personally, have learned many lessons during my time here at Madison. The most important, don’t be scared to try new things and open up because you never know what you will get out of it – unforgettable experiences and lifelong friendships. Life is all about taking chances, risking what is safe in order to attain something greater.
This whole experience has reminded me of a story. Remember the tortoise and the hare? “Slow and steady wins the race”? We are about to enter the real world. Life is competition. Competition is life. Competing with one another and competing with ourselves. If you cheat and get too overly confident, then you will never succeed, you will fail one way or another. But if you take your time, do things the right way, you will always be able to cross the finish line.
So if you had the choice of being the tortoise or the hare, I say, be the tortoise. In order for a tortoise to move, it has to stick its neck out. There are going to be times in your life when there will be challenges. Instead of hiding in your shell, stick your neck out, face and defeat those challenges.
The time has come my fellow graduates to turn your tassels and step out of the shelter that is high school, and embrace the future ahead. I leave you with a quote, “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” Don’t let anything distract you from your goals. Congratulations Class of 2007! We’re out of here!
i think it sucks. it's so generic and not as creative as i would've liked. oh well. i meant well..
