Lisa’s Valedictorian Speech

Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Welcome visitors and family members. I know that we all face pressure and decisions that will shape the rest of our lives. I know that it can, at times, be overwhelming. Can’t it? Sometimes it seems like our goals are out of our reach.

When I begin to doubt myself, I remember my favorite quote. I have tried to live this quote in my life and never give up. A wise man once told me, "You are what you do and you can do more than you think!"

It seems like we are always being faced with new obstacles in our path. Then we make a choice: go around them, climb over them, try to barrel through them, turn around, or just sit there. I have faced this choice many times this year. As some of you know, it has been a difficult year for our family. In September my dad got very sick. I came very close to losing him. It’s amazing how fast your life can change. My life changed in one night. The day after my dad got sick, I had a choice to make… go to school or stay home. I can’t really explain to you exactly how it feels to see a parent and loved one going through something like that; although, I‘m sure some of you may understand.

I guess it’s kind of like when you see Superman almost killed by Kryptonite. Something just seems horribly wrong about it. Well, I decided that while Superman was fighting, I was going to do my best to show him that I too could be strong. I decided to go to school and the next day my brother joined me.

I have to admit that I was walking around in a kind of sad fog for at least a week and not much of what was going on registered. One thing that registered was empathy anytime that I felt one of my family members was being treated poorly, hurt, or punished unjustly. You know…it really amazes me how some people are not aware of the pain others are in and end up will kicking them while they are down. Please try to pay attention to those who are around you and be more compassionate.

It was amazing to me how some people had absolutely no clue during those first few weeks how cruel they were. That is one thing that I really want to say, is for you all to be aware of that. Unfortunately this will probably happen to all of you at some point it time and when it does, I hope you make the decision to stay strong. It is easy to flash a temper and make a scene, but I believe that it is more meaningful to use logic and wisdom. I could easily have lost my temper at some of the ridiculous things that were taking place, but what would have been gained? I realized that instead of lashing out, I needed to hold on tighter to the things that were truly important in my life.

I realized that my family and good friends were really there for me when I needed their support the most. I really believe that that is an important thing for us graduating seniors to realize. The quality of our friends and loved ones is a testimony to who we want to be. Try not to surround yourself with people who are only there for you during the good times, instead surround yourself with the friends who are there for you when your life comes crumbling down, even if there are fewer of them. I think it is explained best in the country song, "You find out who your friends are." Your friends shouldn’t be measured in quantity but in quality.

I have never been one to chase down confrontation and I was not really sure that I had what it took to stand up for what I believed in. This year I discovered that I really could do more than I thought I could. Today I stand before you as a member of the National Honor Society, but I do not stand before you as the Vice-President. I have spent my senior year serving as the Vice President of NHS up until last week, when I resigned my position in order to stand up for what I believe is right. I saw a complete and utter disregard for the rules and constitution of NHS. I felt I had a moral responsibility to act and, after trying to solve the problem through the school’s chain of command, I decided that a more direct and vocal approach should be taken. So, I wrote a letter to the school board. In my letter I told them that if they did not correct the injustice, then I would no longer feel comfortable being an officer. I won’t go into greater detail because the point I want to get across is that I never knew that I had it in me to address the school board twice, talk directly with administration, and take a stand. My hope for all of my fellow graduating seniors is that you all realize that you have the power to do more than you currently believe. If you can have faith in yourself and what you believe in, you will be amazed at what you can accomplish, even when you do not seem to win.

People are often putting down today’s youth of America but the truth is that we are strong and can do more than what others believe. We have a crossroads in front of us right now. If we are to live up to our full potential then we must be willing to push through the limits of what we think is the most we can do. After all, how boring would it be, if who and what we are right now was as good as it gets. It is hard though to break through our own boundaries because it is so easy to become content or complacent. There is no challenge and possible mishap if all we do is stand still and do nothing. But I know enough about you guys up here on the stage with me to know that you won’t be happy just standing still. I just want you to know that you all have wonderful potential and I can’t wait to see what you do with it.

No matter where these next few months and years take us, whether it be college, work, marriage, or a combination, we need to remember that other people will judge us by our actions. We must remember to make our actions things that we will be proud of. It is impossible to see into the future, so all we can do is make the best decisions with the information available to us, and then work to always learn more. Our education does not and can not stop here! We must always remember that if we stop learning, then we stop growing. The more we learn, the more intelligent, and informed, our decisions will be.

Now is a time to put away the mistakes of our past and make the transition into the rest of our lives. We have entered a new chapter and what we each choose to do with our lives will build us into the people we are meant to become.

Make sure that what you become is someone that you will be proud of! Thank you!

Presented by Lisa Dykstra to the class of 2007 at graduation for Westbrook ISD on June 31, 2007.