UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

NEW SPECIMENS OLD SPECIMENS THE SCIENTIST MY LOG CONTACT ME
2001-06-08 - 9:43 a.m.

POMPOUS CIRCUMSTANCE, THE SEQUEL

(Here�s the text of the speech I ended up giving at graduation. I really shouldn�t be a graduation speaker. I think it takes more sentimentality than I possess to be a good one.)

Graduation proves that time cures most things. You�ve been cured of that terrible disease called illiteracy. You can all write in cursive�most of you legibly. Some of you have learned that life can be fun even if you�re NOT elected to student council. Most of you have learned to dance Tinikiling* without getting your ankles caught and the rest of you have recovered from the experience.

As for us, your parents, we�ve been cured of chasing you around trying to blow your noses for you. Most of us don�t get lost in the hallways of Maple Dale** any more (for all the good that will do us NEXT year.) We�ve been cured of the belief that good parenting consists solely of making you wear a hat, eat your vegetables, clean your room, play nicely with others, and turn in your homework�although we�d still like you to do all those good things.

All of us, students and parents, have had some help along the way, of course. The teachers here at Maple Dale and over at Indian Hill have diagnosed our problems, prescribed solutions, and charted our progress. Their remedies have worked wonders.

Still, it�s a good thing that there�s another graduation coming up in four years. There are new languages to learn, books to read, and gym clothes to wash. Many of us still have trouble getting up in the morning but Nicolet�s start time will remedy that. Some of us still play when it�s time to work and work when it�s time to play-- but please be patient with us parents.

So, being here today proves that time cures most things-- and what time doesn�t cure, perhaps summer will. Congratulations and good luck in high school-wherever you may be going.

* Tinikiling is a Filipino folk dance that requires the participants to dance in and out of moving bamboo poles.

**Maple Dale is the district middle school (4-8) and Indian Hill is the district elementary school (JK-3). Most kids from the Maple Dale-Indian Hill district go on to Nicolet High School. Nicolet starts classes at 7:20 a.m.

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