Valedictorian Speech – June 24th, 2016
Good evening honoured guests, staff members, parents and family, friends and the graduating class of 2016.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our teachers for helping us along this journey. For allowing us to make our own mistakes, for continually encouraging us and pushing us to not only be better students, but better people. Without you we wouldn’t be here today.
I would also like to thank our parents. For not giving up on us, showing us grace when we didn’t deserve it, providing us with every opportunity available and especially for believing in us even when we didn’t believe in ourselves.
As I stand before you this evening I am overcome with both joy and sadness. You see I have never really enjoyed endings; the last day of summer, the final chapter of a good book or parting ways with a good friend. Goodbyes are never easy, and today is one of those days. Today we say goodbye to everything familiar; everything comfortable. When we leave this place we are not the same as when we entered.
As I reflect on the past 5 years of my life I am so unbelievably proud to call myself a part of such a kind, welcoming and energetic group of people. It’s funny how no one tells you that your grade 12 year is filled with as much heartbreak as joy. Heartbreak comes when you receive the rejection letter from your dream school; when your best friend chooses to spend the next year a continent away; the day you realize that this year changes everything. But amidst the heartbreak there is joy; the big moments of finalizing what next year will look like, the feeling of handing in your last exam and participating in your last spirit day – but the most important moments are the quiet ones. The realization that someone you barely knew is now your best friend, finding passion in a subject you thought you’d hate and when just being with your friends is enough. The joy is scattered throughout bringing light to even the darkest of situations. Together we went through tragedy, setbacks, momentous occasions and from those have been changed for the better. I’m sure I speak for all of you when I say that each and every one of you has helped shape the person I am today. Although we are saying goodbye there are some people who are so much a part of us that they will be with us wherever we go. They are our solid ground, our rock and the clear, small voices in our hearts that will be with us always.
As we walk through those doors and into the real world we have the ability to become exactly who we want to be. We have the power and ambition to take hold of our dreams and make them a reality. There’s a quote by Abraham Lincoln that says “whatever you are, be a good one.” graduating class of 2016 this is what I hope for you all. So don’t let the desires, thoughts or expectations of other people hold you back from doing what sets your soul of fire, the thing that brings a smile to your face and gives you a reason to wake up in the morning; whether that is being a clown at children’s birthday parties or a professional athlete, do yourself the courtesy of pursuing exactly what brings your heart joy.
I wish that I could tell you I had all the answers to the many life questions that will arise in the coming years, I wish I could tell you that the most difficult and trying decisions of your life are behind you and I wish that I could say with 100% certainty that our lives will always be filled with contentment and wealth. Unfortunately, I cannot guarantee a single one of those things. But I can tell you without a doubt in my mind that you all have worth beyond your knowledge, wisdom beyond your years and that the world is a better place simply because you exist. We, the class of 2016, are a powerhouse of innovation and creativity. We will push boundaries to make this world a better place even in small ways. Always remember where you came from. And always remember where you are going. Congratulations graduates.