The class of 2010 at Bryan County High School and Richmond Hill High School have gotten diplomas and thus began a new lives.
Some graduates will go on to college. Some may attend a two-year school while others will enter the work force or serve our country, which for all its faults is still the best hope for mankind, still the place where men and women from around the world come to enjoy the fruits of liberty.
For the class of 2010, this is the beginning of a new era. It marks the beginning of adulthood and freedom -- freedom to fail, but also freedom to succeed beyond one’s wildest dreams. It is not going to an easy journey.
The class of 2010 inherits a world that is in trouble, though that probably could be said about every graduating class since the first high school graduation speaker made the first speech. But it is true.
Though there are some signs of recovery, there are still too many reminders that we are not yet out of the recession that has caused much despair.
Our assault on the environment continues unabated, most dramatically now in the Gulf of Mexico where untold thousands of gallons of crude oil threaten wildlife and ways of life.
We also remain a country at war, though relatively few of us do the heavy lifting.
Similarly, we live in a time when opinions seem to matter as much as truth, and too many people only want to read or see or hear what they agree with. The ability to compromise, to think independently and to respect opposing viewpoints, once a quality much admired, seems to be valued less than “winning” an argument or being seen as correct.
Our hope is younger generations see that for the waste of time and talent that it is.
There is, of course, good news. For graduates, the good starts with the people who have helped shape you, raised you, taken care of you these past years: your family and your teachers. They care about you and want you to succeed, and our advice is to follow their guidance.
And for all our problems as a nation, there is still a wide world out there waiting on you to make your mark. We believe you will do that.
You are armed with brains, and good health, and the youth and vitality to accomplish what it is you set out to do. Just remember to question that which strikes you as wrong, seek always to do the right thing and remember that there is not only plenty of work to do, but also that here is no shame in hard work. Above all else, keep an open mind and open heart. They can take you far.
Some graduates will go on to college. Some may attend a two-year school while others will enter the work force or serve our country, which for all its faults is still the best hope for mankind, still the place where men and women from around the world come to enjoy the fruits of liberty.
For the class of 2010, this is the beginning of a new era. It marks the beginning of adulthood and freedom -- freedom to fail, but also freedom to succeed beyond one’s wildest dreams. It is not going to an easy journey.
The class of 2010 inherits a world that is in trouble, though that probably could be said about every graduating class since the first high school graduation speaker made the first speech. But it is true.
Though there are some signs of recovery, there are still too many reminders that we are not yet out of the recession that has caused much despair.
Our assault on the environment continues unabated, most dramatically now in the Gulf of Mexico where untold thousands of gallons of crude oil threaten wildlife and ways of life.
We also remain a country at war, though relatively few of us do the heavy lifting.
Similarly, we live in a time when opinions seem to matter as much as truth, and too many people only want to read or see or hear what they agree with. The ability to compromise, to think independently and to respect opposing viewpoints, once a quality much admired, seems to be valued less than “winning” an argument or being seen as correct.
Our hope is younger generations see that for the waste of time and talent that it is.
There is, of course, good news. For graduates, the good starts with the people who have helped shape you, raised you, taken care of you these past years: your family and your teachers. They care about you and want you to succeed, and our advice is to follow their guidance.
And for all our problems as a nation, there is still a wide world out there waiting on you to make your mark. We believe you will do that.
You are armed with brains, and good health, and the youth and vitality to accomplish what it is you set out to do. Just remember to question that which strikes you as wrong, seek always to do the right thing and remember that there is not only plenty of work to do, but also that here is no shame in hard work. Above all else, keep an open mind and open heart. They can take you far.