Followers of this blog know that we celebrated a milestone in our home this past week as our youngest son graduated from high school.  It’s an exciting and frightening experience for the child as he reaches the end of a long road with good friends and looks forward to a new and uncharted path through college.

 What he doesn’t perhaps know is that is only the first of many likely experiences of becoming part of something and then moving on and leaving good colleagues behind. 

For parents, it is a bittersweet milestone.  Both my wife and I had great high school experiences and in fact, that is where we met.  Our son had a great experience as well in a wonderful community and environment.  And while we are excited for him, it was difficult to not feel a bit nostalgic as we sat and watched the graduation ceremony and applauded as one by one the friends of his childhood shook hands with administrators, grabbed their diplomas and walked off into the future.

High School graduation speeches are mostly predictable and that is OK.  The valedictorian and salutatorian offer their respective perspectives on what the experience has meant for everyone, and they offer their thoughts and encouragement for their classmates on the upcoming adventure.  The Principal and the School Board President offer perspectives from years of watching students move through and then out into the world, and then someone ties it all off with the final words of encouragement, everyone throws their caps in the air and it is done.

I’m not certain whether the soon to be graduates sitting in the chairs and looking forward to graduation parties and getting ready for college actually hear the words or grasp the true meaning of the well-intended advice.  The parents certainly do. 

From the Principal on Things to Appreciate As You Move Forward in Life:

  • The value of a friend rises as you grow older.   You will meet many people in your life, but you will only make a few good friends.  Keep and treasure those friendships as they will give you support and importantly in your future, they will be the link to your past.
  • Appreciate your parents, because you never know when they will be gone for good.
  • The lessons of success through hard work and dedication were taught and learned by many of you.  Remember them and they will serve you well. 

From the Student Speakers:

  • Your experiences here have helped shape you.  Take them forward and build on them in your life.
  • No matter where you go or what you do, you share a unique bond with your classmates.  It is now part of you. 
  • Remember that you’ve set high standards in academics and in athletics here and it is your responsibility to carry those standards forward and live up to or exceed them.
  • This has been just one important step in preparing you for life.

The Bottom-Line for Now:

While the same words in some form are echoed at thousands of ceremonies around the country in May and June, there is a good deal of wisdom, hope and encouragement in the forward looking and the retrospective comments.

Even if you’ve long since moved beyond your own high school graduation, it is helpful to be reminded of the words that launched us from childhood into adulthood.  The context has changed, but the advice still holds: 

  • Keep looking forward and keep reaching with the same spirit that you had in your youth. 
  • Don’t forget how you got to where you are today.  You had a lot of help along the way.  It’s time to give some back.