When I was first asked to make this speech I saw it as an excellent opportunity to give a long discourse on my own philosophy, to be a great prophet letting the light into your lives. But then I recalled the ancient Greek, Socrates. He was a wise Athenian who went about giving everybody good advice. They poisoned him.
Though we, the grads, are not graduating for real tonight this symbolic ceremony means a great deal. The air is charged with a mixture of primeval fear and excitement. It is as though we are attending an ancient sacrificial ceremony. There you are sitting row upon row of black and white robed spectators waiting expectantly for the lions to come. And here I am, feeling very much like the victim-to-be of those lions. Never the less we should be excited, for tonight is the culmination of 12 long years of labour. Tonight is the end of an era and the start of a new one for each one of us. Twelve years is a long time to work for one piece of paper and even tonight I find it hard to believe that myself and so many others are still around to collect.
When faced with the job of putting into words what we grads have meant to each other I was a little uneasy. I wasn't quite sure what we had been to each other. Some of us slept together in Kindergarten and had paint-ins. In elementary school we shared the excitement or big-time marble playing. While the girls were hopskotching and skipping, the boys were playing soccer and skipping out. In Junior High we began to eat our lunches together and have group P. E. It was there that the girls first got interested in dancing and the boys got interested in watching them dance. By the time we reached high school it was apparent that we were a very large communal family. We had grown up together as a class. We of grade 12 now know each other’s strong points and weak points. We wait with bated breath for the announcement of our fellows’ accomplishments in music, drama, sports and other contests. Not all have joined clubs or have been on the student's council. But everyone here has been a vital member of this family. Some of us have appeared to be fools at one time or another through the years, but as Mark Twain said "If it weren't for us fools, you others would never look good.
Teachers too have played their part. In our junior grades we thought of them as vicious guards in a prison, forever searching for and finding new ways to thwart our freedom. It is remarkable how much they have matured in the past few years. They have given up their evil ways and have become friends instead of enemies, guardians instead of guards, people instead of symbols of tyranny. Our teachers of today will always be teachers in our minds even when they are long gone. Here is a pleasant story about them passed on to me from the great beyond. It seems that St. Peter was at the gates one day when he heard a wrap on the door. He said "Who 's there?" and a voice answered "It Is me". Peter said "Come in." A few minutes later the same thing happened. Another voice answered from behind the door "It's me" and St. Peter told him to enter. This same procedure went on all day until near dusk there came a sharper wrap than the others. This time when St. Peter said "Who's there" a voice answered "It is I". St. Peter chuckled to himself "It's another one of those school teachers."
Grade one was started by a large number of students with a great deal of enthusiasm. By grade 12 both the numbers and the enthusiasm have dropped a great deal. For some, school is financially impossible, for many it became too boring. The same thing will probably be met
in life. Most will bounce out to high school full of vim and vigour, ready for everything and anything. I’ve heard that after a few years of ones own company and cooking life doesn't look quite so appetizing. The situation is very similar to that which a logging crew was in. One
night at dinner the cook growled at them "What's the matter with you guys? Monday you liked beans, Tuesday you liked beans, Wednesday you liked beans, and now Thursday all of a sudden you DON'T LIKE BFANS!"
The styles of life and living have changed since our parents’ day. Boys never had long hair though their grandparents may have. Instead they cut it in brushcuts or slicked it down with oil. I notice that a lot of parents worry about the younger generations modes of dress and appearance. I was once told by a friend that his mother was very much in favour of having a collection started so that I could get my hair cut. I needn't tell you that I wasn't much in favour of the idea. One of the more profound observations that I have made in my many many long years of life is that current styles are very often just current fashions, and they should be treated as such. They deserve no great thought or contemplation. There are too many other problems in this world to think about. Besides, the variety makes life interesting. I really don't think people should ever be 'put down' for looking neat or having short hair. We need us all to make the world go round.
It seems that we of the 1970 graduating class have started a tradition. We were the first to elect a woman as president of our school. Next year's graduating class as done the same already. I suppose some traditions are inevitable. Winston Churchill was once asked what he thought of the prediction that in the year 2000 women will be ruling the world. He replied with his wise old smile "So …, they still will be, Eh?"
For some, school has meant a great deal of work and no reward. Those active in the A.C.C. and Student's Council will surely vouch for me in this. Whenever I begin thinking that I have been working too hard for the good of the State I remember the story about a small boy in a similar situation. Though the story doesn't solve any problems it does lighten my mood. I have found that a lightened mood is often the only thing required to face many of today's problems. Johnny's mother was lecturing him one day telling him that he would get nowhere with the selfish attitude that he had. She went on to say that the main reason he was on this earth was to help others. Johnny, a little dubious about how far that proposal would get him asked. "Well
if that's my job, what are the others for?"
It would be easy for some, graduating from high school or from some higher institute of learning, to be overly proud of their accomplishments. Certainly graduation is a worthy accomplishment but it should not be stressed too much for there is always something new to be learned. There was once a storeowner who was quite proud of the fact that he was a self-made man. He had had no formal education and didn't think much of those that had. One day a boy, just graduated from high school came to him looking for work. The store owner told him that he could sweep out the store, to which the boy replied "But I'm a high-school graduate." The man replied "In that case I'll have to show you how."
After tonight the slow but sure process of packing our bags will come. It isn't that our parents wish to see us go, nor that we ourselves want to go. It is just a fact that we have come to a point in our lives where our present clothes no longer fit, and we must shed them like the snake does his skin. On the last day of school we will scatter. Evermore to come back to Kamloops High as proper members of that school. Some will go on to be scientist, others may be farmers or businessmen or politicians. Whatever your vocation or path in life I wish to you the best of luck. And if I had another wish it would be that each one of us could become a success at least in our own eyes. I hope that each grad has his or her idealistic stars to search for in this great experiment called "LIFE". For starting from now, grade 12 we will be stepping into a very misty swamp. We will need those stars to guide us. Whether we sink or walk on top depends entirely on ourselves and our goals.
As this is quite likely the last time that we will all be gathered together I would like to say good-bye to those I have grown up with. In the last 12 years I would say that the good times have strongly out-weighed the bad. I have learned with you and from you. I hope it has been the same for you.
Tonight is a time for taking leave of friends. It is a time for saying a fond farewell to those we have grown up with. So may I say "Fare thee well". "And if forever; then still forever Fare thee well."
