PRINT ADS

Today is May 25…..but its May 25, 2033. It’s been a long time since you graduated. I remember trying to give you an inspirational speech for your graduation in 2008, but I’m sure none of you remember me… or the speech noh well.

I’m 85 years old…, and look… how old the board and administrators are… must say time does some damage. Even your old associate principal has lost some hair. And you old graduates from ‘08 are what about 42 or 43 now??

The Board, administrators, and I wanted you to come back again so we could say thank you. 2008 was a long time ago and we felt the only way we could appropriately thank you.. was to have you return to OHS, twenty-five years after your graduation.

We are so proud of what you have done since your graduation, and so many of you have turned out OK. We never would have thought so many of you would be leaders in your chosen fields. Let’s see, …from your class, …we have an ambassador to the United Nations, two senators, 5 mayors, doctors and nurses, carpenters who build green houses and green buildings, mechanics who work on my hydrogen car, distance learning teachers, and an opera singer from London, plus many more proud professions. You are responsible and involved citizens… who have tackled some huge problems we had back in ‘08.

Who would have ever thought in ‘08 that some of you would earn college degrees in Creative Ideas, or Values and Humanity, or moral business leadership? And I love those new Master’s programs in zero gravity plumbing and quantum chaos management.

Your public school education gave you the opportunity to keep learning and keep striving for your dream job. Your generation has really changed the world. All of us baby boomers were a little afraid of letting you lead the way, but you did things… that we …were not able to do.

The year you graduated there was a tight race for president. We thought it was monumental because the first black man, first women, and an older man… who was a prisoner of war… all ran for the presidency. As you may remember the advertising was obnoxious… and special interest groups were so involved, ..no one knew… what was fact from fiction …or who to vote for. You guys changed the whole system and made it fair. Now the voices of all US citizens are heard.

Glad you got rid of the Electoral College and made voting easier for all of us. Everybody votes now, …and so nice to see more than two political parties. Great job on helping us all to understand it’s the candidate’s ability to have a meaningful vision …..not what the candidate’s look like as a reason to vote for a US President.

Our president we elected 2032. …never had to defend personal history and no one seemed to care about sexual orientation, ethnic background, or religious preferences. I like her,…like her a lot… and I think she is doing a great job working for our country, and in the World Conference of Nations.

The new Supreme Court also does a nice job now. They still apply Constitutional Law,…. but not for political purposes… I have enjoyed seeing rulings in the past few years using Constitutional Law.. to promote human rights …and international values of goodwill….. I like the idea that Supreme Court justices serve for only ten years now.

The United States is again respected around the world… and better yet, we partnered with other countries to work together in real ways …to solve world problems. I like that!

Then Health Care…

Boy --back when you graduated many people did not have health insurance. Everyone blamed everyone else for the flawed health care system in ‘08. Drug companies and insurance companies and hospital charges and co-pays; no one wanting to fix the teeth of poor people…. It was awful.

You fixed that too. You demanded change. You recognized health care is a right. Wasn’t easy for you to get all the people working together… but you held firm and now… well I still have my own teeth and my heart bypass was not even a surgical procedure, …didn’t cost me a dime! You were the first generation to make healthy living a major initiative, we all got healthy… and much thinner.

We appreciate the way you have taken care of your parents and all the baby boomer generation. We are treated with dignity and respect.… we have so many choices as to where we want to live and what we want to do. You worked with stem cells …yet kept a respect for life,.. and broadened research to tame the worst diseases we worried about in ’08.

If you remember, we went nuts when gasoline prices went over $4.00 a gallon and all the major oil companies were showing huge profits.

Now I don’t exactly know how you knew to use magnets, satellites, and hydrogen to solve the energy crisis, …but, it sure worked.

When you graduated we were just starting to become green, but now 25 years later, there are no more air quality warnings ..and the water is safe to drink all around the world. Again, I’m not sure how you did it. Did you just start to communicate and share ideas with others from other countries? The advances to grow food in deserts, …and having natural products grown close to home, was a good idea. We didn’t know you could use wind energy without harming wildlife and making a lot of noise,-- and you harnessed solar energy even in cloudy Wisconsin!

Talking about going green…how about those Packers. Three Super Bowl victories in five years under Coach …Bret Favre,.. now that’s exciting, although (scratch) everyone is wondering if he will retire before the next season. He is getting old now too.

Thanks for making the schools different too. Small hand sized laptops have replaced all the worn textbooks.. and the kids today are learning so much more knowledge. Students now learn at their own pace. I’m really glad you kept the sports ..and the arts.. as valued parts of the school curriculum. I still enjoy the great OHS marching band, the choirs, plays and art shows, and of course, all the sports.

We wanted you to come back together again. I know some of you live right here and help guide our schools and city. I know some of you had to fly back from all over the world just to be here. We thank you for making the effort, and for making our world better in 2033. Please help me thank the class of 2008 for all the work they have done over the past 25 years.

While I enjoy metaphor and parody, you are facing some important issues in the world today. Today many people would say… our country… and the world are in…. dire straights. We hear and see every day through the media,.. and in our lives,.. problems about energy, ..gasoline prices,,, bombings and war,.. destruction from natural events,.. bias and prejudice,.. the economy,..health care,.. and the environment.

You must wonder,.. what kind of world you will be walking into as adults, and what the future will look like for you,.. for our country, ..for our world.

You have a great education so far,.. this district has provided you tools that you can use for the rest of your life. The diploma you have earned will help you begin to tackle complicated ..and difficult issues in your global backyard.

C.S. Lewis said, “It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird;

it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly…

while remaining an egg.

We are like eggs at present.

And you cannot go on indefinitely being an egg.

We must be hatched …

or go bad.”

We don’t choose who we are, but we can choose what we become. To the class of 2008, look around at all the people sitting here today. Many love you but all us believe you are very capable of changing our world.

You are an egg…ready to be hatched.

Change ..is a choice that begins with one person’s dream,….dare …to be …that one person. Congratulations to the class of 2008.