I hope you look back on this section of your life with rose colored glasses. I hope wherever you go and whatever you do in life you truly enjoy it. I hope you live the life you want to live not the life your friends, family, or partner wants you to live. You will regret it if you don’t stay true to yourself.
With that said here is my never spoken grad speech.
"A Chinese farmer spends all of his money on a horse, which soon runs away. A neighbor says, "That's bad news." The farmer replies, "Good news, bad news, who can say? We'll see."
The horse comes back and brings another horse with him. Good news, you might say.
The farmer gives the second horse to his son, who rides it, then is thrown and badly breaks his leg. "So sorry for your bad news," says the concerned neighbor. "Good news, bad news, who can say? We'll see." the farmer replies. In a week or so, the emperor's men come and take every able-bodied young man to fight in a war. The farmer's son is spared. Good news, of course.
Today is a good day to be alive, isn't it? You got breath in your lungs! A beating heart in your chest! And you are graduating today or here supporting someone who is. Or you're a teacher who has to be here (playful comment) . But to my grads, my recent IHS Alumni, you did it! We did it! Like most of you there were many times throughout my west Irondequoit career that I honestly did not think I would make it here today. Countless endless nights, and even longer mornings. The tedious and superfluous assignments and busy work.
Writing DBQ after FRQ after another long essay-Q. The math classes where you had no clue what was going on but you just kept taking the notes. Or the times when you turned away from the bathroom because it was full, to say the least. Oh, and you can't forget the occasional depression. IHS was not perfect. The vending machines in the lunchroom would not sell candy or soda until 3:30, like come on now. But I digress. Saying this out loud makes it seem like IS was horrible, that we barely survived. To some of you this may be a reality. But to the majority of you IS was not a horrible place that you barely survived but instead a community you were a part of. Because at IS for every bad thing there was at least one good thing that would cancel out the negative. For every late night there was a friend to call. For every season of depression there was a shoulder to cry on. For every moment of confusion in class there was a friend willing to share notes, or even better homework answers. Not to mention the school events, the musicals, sports games or after school clubs. There was an abundance of activities that eased the pain and stress of school. IHS was not a horrible school or a perfect school. It was just right. There were many times when I thought that when something that made me happy happened it was a good thing, and when something made me sad, it was a bad thing. But my time at HS taught me otherwise. It took me a while to realize that this is not the case; I hope that you realized, too. For every tutoring center you got put into, for every time you stopped sitting at the lunch table. You made a new friend or a new connection to something in some form, may that be a book, a YouTube channel. And for every friendship you made there was at least one betrayal, and for every lesson learned, there was a missed opportunity. Life is very similar to high school in this sense. I truly hope you realize this, sooner rather than later. Things are not so straight forward in life. You may think that
"I'm going to get this degree, to do this job for so many years, then I'm gonna do blah blah blah" or you might be on the other end of the spectrum having no clue what you're going to do with your life once this ceremony is finished. But when I say this I am speaking to both ends of the spectrum and everyone in the middle. Life is not so... straightforward it is not so black and white. It is often a winding road that we're all trying to navigate. And when you least expect it or least want it, a Monkey wrench is thrown at you, messing up your ideal plan. When-not if'--that happens, remember that life is funky sometimes, it can only be understood backwards but must be lived in the present. So when something bad or good happens to you. Or when you hear good or bad news do not take it to... heart so much simply take it as news. Because in the end do you really know if its good or bad? I guess you'll just have to wait... and see.
See you later alligators!
-Charles Vitkus
Информация по комментариям в разработке