Graduates of 05.

[p u r e e v i l]

To all of you who have graduated this year or are going to in a few days...

I graduated last night, and I can only describe it as the masses have, it is Bitter Sweet. Nothing can describe it, the feeling of knowing that you're no longer daddies little girl, or mommas boy. You're all grown up, and the next steps in life are all about you and how you choose to live them. The worst of all, though.. that you will never see those friends or some of those people ever again... cherish the memories.

The page has turned and the next chapter in our life is about to be written. I challenge you all to live life to the fullest and let nothing stand in your way. When you fall... stand back up and continue doing what you know you can do. The sky's the limit, and we've all seen space. Shoot for the stars, even if there's a tree branch in the way.

Whatever the future holds for all of you graduating with the Class of 05 at your school, remember this...

We will face problems that none have ever had to deal with in the past. With the way the Economy is, the oil prices, Social Security, etc. is, who knows where we'll be in the future? It is up to us to make a change... Notice that I said they were problems, and every problem has a solution, we just have to find it. Do not give up! The greater your education is, the more we'll be able to accomplish. We will find means for the future, for our kids, their kids and so on... I challenge you to do your best in the next few years and to make your life what you want it to be.

Climb the mountain, write another chapter in that book of life... I wish you all luck!

[wyn1370]

holy crap west side's old... well kind of
congrats Joe

[BobTheCow]

I don't graduate until the 21st. I hate Fairfax County.

[personman]

Yeah yeah, sniff sniff tear tear, congradulations.

Too bad '07 is where it's at

[SpecialBlend2786]

I'm graduating on the 17th. So is tropical_fishy



I read that over twice by the way. Thank you, and good luck to you as well!

[Gitaroo Man]

Graduation tomorrow....wooo!

[p8ntball365]

Class of....'09 hrmm, i got a way to go.

Congratulations to you all.

[Automaggot68]

Congratulations, bro.

[SCpoloRicker]

HS kid != horrible English?!?!1



Congratulations, graduates! Enjoy college, for the real world is inevitable.



/once your home or have a DD, of course

[bunny5]

Yo bobthecow.....

I thought Prince William County sucks. I graduate the 10th. Glad to see another AOer graduating

[quik]

Congrats everyone

[tropical_fishy]

Almost done. Finally.

How about the "sunscreen speech" that Kurt Vonnegut DIDN'T give?

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of '97:


Wear sunscreen.


If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen
would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been
proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no
basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will
dispense this advice now.


Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind.
You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth
until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look
back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp
now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you
really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.


Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying
is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing
bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things
that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you
at 4 pm on some idle Tuesday.


Do one thing every day that scares you.


Sing.


Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with
people who are reckless with yours.


Floss..


Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead,
sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end,
it's only with yourself.


Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you
succeed in doing this, tell me how.


Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.


Stretch.


Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with
your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at
22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most
interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.


Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them
when they're gone.


Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children,
maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance
the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you
do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself
either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.


Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of
it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest
instrument you'll ever own.


Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.


Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.


Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.


Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone
for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to
your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the
future.


Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few
you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography
and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need
the people who knew you when you were young.


Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.
Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you
soft. Travel.


Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians
will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll
fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable,
politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.


Respect your elders.


Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust
fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when
either one might run out.


Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it
will look 85.


Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who
supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way
of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting
over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.


But trust me on the sunscreen.

[Target Practice]

Hey, it's the same speech that they said at my graduation.

[slade]

posts like that is one of the reasons i stay on AO.

[MrMag]

Congrats grads, I just finished my first year of college...wow. You have a lot of good times in store, but holy wow does it go SO fast.