Mismatched

A Funny Thing Happened During Graduation...

Finally! It's graduation day!

The students of the class of 2019 were all in the auditorium, as were me and Hera! And as we were standing there, pretty damn proud of what we had accomplished, everyone in the stands, including my own family, were cheering on us. They all were proud of us for what we had just done: we had made it through Senior year!

And it was NOT a traditional ceremony by any means, either.

The song that was playing was "Endless Possibilities" from the video game Sonic Unleashed (or Sonic World Adventure for the Easterners), performed by Jaret Reddick of the band Bowling for Soup.

And when the music ended, the ruckus died down, and we were all allowed to be seated.

"Good evening Salt Lake City! I'm Julie O'Hara, the principal of D. W. Bell High School," Principal O'Hara began. "It is my pleasure to welcome you to this evening's commencement program for the Class of 2019. We are gathered here tonight in a formal ceremony to celebrate this significant milestone in the lives of these young men and women. At this time, would you please stand or remain standing and join the D. W. Bell Chambers Choir as we pay our respects to our flag and country and honor America with the singing of our National Anthem."

After all that was done, she continued: "We are privileged to have a Board of School Directors who are dedicated to provide D. W. Bell students with outstanding curricular as well as extracurricular opportunities. Will our School Board members who are present on the stage this evening please stand and be recognized."

And all the board members stood up and were greeted with a thunderous roar of applause from all of us in the auditorium.

"I would like to introduce Mr. James O'Connor, the president of the Salt Lake City Board of School Directors, so he can address the class of 2019."

And the board's president, a beefy and seemingly muscular dude, stepped up to the podium to deliver his remarks.

"I would like to welcome you here today to celebrate the graduation of the D. W. Bell High School class of 2019," President O'Connor began. "Class of 2019, congratulations on reaching this milestone in your life. I sincerely hope that this commencement ceremony will be one of your fond memories as you move on in life. You have spent your entire life, up to this point, learning and growing. This process of growth and learning has brought you here tonight, ready to go out into the world.

"Most of you have already made your decision on what you will do to further learn and grow," he continued. "Many will continue their education at various institutions of higher learning, others have chosen to enter the workforce, some will take different paths based on their passions, interests and desires and some have chosen to enter into military service. For all those in the audience who have, or are, or will be serving, let me thank you for your Past – Present – and Future – service.

In all probability you will take diverse paths to get where you want to be in the future, but what does that future hold for you? I believe that your future will only be limited by your imagination and the desire and drive to make the world a better place. The futurists, when I was your age, were predicting things that, at the time, seemed impossible. Yet here we are today with many of those predictions a reality.

"This last item deals with your unselfish efforts to give back to your community. Your actions are outstanding and a role model for others. Continue that into the future wherever you eventually settle. Over the last few years I have had the privilege of presenting students with their diplomas. As I presented them with their diplomas I was struck by the spark in their eyes as they looked forward to the future. It is a wonderful thing to see that spark and the hope for the future that I am sure is behind that spark. And so I ask you, the class of 2019, to NEVER let anyone or anything extinguish that spark or hope. I ask this of you BECAUSE YOU ARE OUR FUTURE! So on behalf of the School Board, I want to wish all of you the best of everything as you continue to learn and grow, and hope that we read about your outstanding accomplishments in future years. THANK YOU."