Hello! It has been two years since I last logged in, and boy how things have changed! I am excited to rejoin the many discussions. Anyway, the reason I am posting is that I am indeed my senior class valedictorian and am of course honored with the task of writing/delivering a speech at gradation (along with 4 other people who rank in the top 1% of my class as well). We have been informed that all of our speeches must revolve around a central theme (last year’s being ‘responsibility’). Upon hearing this, the four others and I were somewhat concerned about what our ‘theme’ should entail—none of us want to use a lame, cliché theme that is used every year. During the discussion, we all seemed to agree that we wanted a very unique theme that we could really do something interesting with, and of course, include humor. We do NOT want to be boring whatsoever, and we want to stray away from your standard graduation speech as much as possible.

So do any of you have any suggestions? Remember—unique and flexibility to include humor!

Thanks!

-Ben

Well, I did my high school valedictorian speech back in 1973 on "Punctuation", in which I drew parallels between graduation day and what kind of punctuation it was, using the dictionary definitions for inspiration. "Is today a period for you? A semi-colon?" etc. Seemed to go over big with the moms and dads.

"Space!"
...and congratulations!

Ah, you beat me to it!

I'd broaden it to astronomy, space exploration, and science as the future destinations and goals of humanity.

WTG. MonoKid!

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When my youngest son graduated high school in 1993, many of us cynical types in the audience chuckled when the valedictorian talked about how her generation was going to change everything for the better. We knew that life would beat that optimism out of her in short order.

You might want to take a brief look back at the things that have changed in your lifetimes and use that as a means of looking forward. Most of your classmates were probably born in 1989. That was a pivotal year: the year the Warsaw Pact collapsed, the Berlin Wall fell, and one European communist government after another fell, leading to the collapse of the Soviet Union two years later. We're still feeling the effects of those events and no one knows for sure how things will turn out.

The most valuable skill any of you can hope to acquire is the ability to learn how to adapt to change. Technologies that are commonplace today such as DVDs didn't exist when you were born. Things change constantly and those who can't adapt to change are going to suffer. Learn how to learn. Develop the ability to take new information and make it your own.

Just some thoughts.

"Innovation"

Then go on about how you're excited about all the cool new ways to make beer-bongs and drinking games once you get to college. Lol okay, probably not the best idea, but I'm no validictorian.

While I can't really think of a good theme (I have a term paper to write, still trying to come up with my own theme sorry) I can echo Larry's advice. Please don't say how you can't wait to change the world, or how you've learned so much your ready to go out and take on the world. Not only is it cliche and cheesey, as pointed out, the more "weathered" members of the audience will take it as young nievity and not intelligence or spirit.

I like something more along the lines of "Wisdom is knowing that you don't know anything, and charector is the endless effort to change that. Or is that insanity?"

Or you could be like the guy in my graduating class and talk about "nuggets". We still make fun of him for that (behind his back, of course. I don't know him personally, other than he has/had a radiospot on the local rock station).

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.

"The challenges against thinking in society"

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And the "driving on the freeway on a scooter" analogy still holds true because the pilots are sitting in 7 to 30 ton aircraft o' doom and you are running around them in your very own Meatbody, Mark I. Beep, beep.
Trying to make sense of computers, The Error Log.

I like Larry's idea. Maybe one way to do it would be not to give the speech as your present day self, but as if you just time traveled back from 20 years in the future, and you are giving a speech on how your fellow graduates' lives will change (have changed) in the next 20 years. You could even throw in some jokes along the lines of "enjoy that long hair now Bob, because in 20 years there won't be any left". Each of you could take a different aspect about the future.

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At night the stars put on a show for free (Carole King)

One Earth, One Sky - IYA 2009

First, congratulations, CO!

My own suggestion is:

Preserving a true sense of wonder in a mundane world.

"To see the world in a grain of sand, and to see heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hands, and eternity in an hour."


Years ago when I gave my little speech at my son's bar mitzvah, I knew that I was supposed to offer him parental blessings, the usual, long life, health, children, etc. I wished him wonders.

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The Devil offered me power. I told him I preferred aperture.

Well there is the futility of working too hard
day after day after day! Be making sure you
"chill out" regularly every month for a day or
two For the rest of your long life

is it a public school?

If so, I would try to thank god that there is no censorship in the US, but I just like causing trouble.

On the other hand, if there is 4 of you speechifying, I would go for how there is too much talk and not enough action in politics today.

just a couple ideas from a cynic

Awesome! Im digging your ideas! Keep them coming!

I have to second this idea. My first thought was "critical thinking", though I'm not sure that's got quite as much potential for humor as other suggestions. It's an important day for you and your classmates, though, and I think I, personally, would try to convey something with a lot of meaning. Humor is certainly important, and you won't get far without it, but I think it should be there for support rather than a central focus. A subject like critical thinking is something that could be of value to everyone present, and not just the students, though ironically the ones who need to hear it most, by definition, will be those least likely to listen...

Oh, and congratulations and good luck!

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Nicholas Bostaph
http://NicholasBostaph.com
http://NightscapeCreations.com
http://FantasyMasterOnline.com

You could all shave your heads and go on to explaine that no matter how many important things are going on in the world, people still care more about brittny spears. heh.

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I'm like one of those idiot savants...well, except for the savant part.

Hehe yeah....

Wait. No. Might not be a bad joke though. Tell them you considered it, but then the hats wouldn't have stayed on or some such. Like they stay on anyway.

I'd go with the theme that high school is over, but learning is not. High school doesn't prepare a person to enter the world, it prepares them to learn HOW to enter it. As long as there is wonder, there is learning. As long there is learning, there is progress. As long as there is progress, there is the chance that the future can be a better place.

Also, and this come just from what I've discovered when I write, having the first person to speak make an odd reference that is just out of place enough to be noticed, then have the last person close with a similar reference that ties it all together. It could even be a joke. Maybe have the last person say, "now if we can move this along a bit faster, we all have to get to the barber before it closes", to tie it in with the shaved head joke at the start.

Just a thought.

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I'm not evil.
An evil person would do the things I think up.

One other thought, CO: imagine yourself sitting out there and listening to what you say. So, keep it short!

And remember that it is much harder to be brief than to be prolix.

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The Devil offered me power. I told him I preferred aperture.

Re a space theme:

We each are limited to 2 minutes. Soooo, I am forced to be brief lol.