OK... y'all must think I’m crazy. I’ve obviously ditched the blog for a more current form of social media... Instagram... or insta as the cool kids call it. Well, I don’t know if they’re cool or not, but they’re a lot younger than I am so that’s a start I guess.
So why the sudden need to blog? Writers block! Plain and simple. The Valedictorian process is a different one around these parts. Oh, PS, I’ve been nominated from my class as Valedictorian.
So, here’s the run down. There are three different “schools” within NSCC. My program falls under the school of business. Every program within each of the three schools can nominate a candidate. That candidate then writes a speech and presents to the deciders... who then choose a valedictorian for the program. For more information, see confusing in the dictionary. Does anyone use dictionaries anymore? I don't even know if some of the grads would understand the reference. That's actually the beginning to one of the many speeches I’ve started within the last week.
Yes, I said many. Some of them are captivating and funny, others are a little dull and cliché, but all of them have one thing in common... they are not complete.
How does one even address such a wide variety of people? The school of business is far more than just Culinary Arts... but do I know anyone who isn’t taking Culinary? No. Can I relate to them on an educational level? Probably not. Let’s be honest, I’m probably not the best person for this job. I tend to ramble. I have trouble completing thoughts and most of the time I can barely spit a sentence out without sounding like I have a mouth full of marbles. And let’s not forget the elephant in the room... I’m 30! Do these 20 somethings really have that much in common with me? No. I’m not a millennial. I care about the Kardashians (I had to look up how to spell Kardashian) and unless it came out before 2006 chances are good I don’t know who sings the song currently being played on the radio. Do people even listen to the radio still? See... I’m out of touch! There’s no class tomorrow and what am I doing? I’m sitting home, in bed, in my pink housecoat, writing this! How lame is that? I do have snacks though... good ones too... you should be jealous of my snacks.
Anyway... back to my current predicament. How to do I write a graduation speech that will motivate, inspire and captivate an audience when I don’t even know my audience. It’s not like we ever get out of the kitchen! I get 10 emails a week about different lunch time activities we can participate in... have I ever gone to one? NO! We’re making lunch! Just once I would have liked to experienced Mindfulness Meditation in room 2101, it would probably help with the anxiousness I'm feeling about this speech. But it gets worse... not only do I not know anyone else in the school except the 30ish people who wear whites all day (we stick out like sore thumbs... the jackets are like a beacon for us to get together and be loners.), I don’t even know what programs fall under the school of business category! Who am I even addressing!? I assume the people taking business... but who else? If anyone at school is reading this... please remind me to find that out on Tuesday.
I could say things like ‘be the best you can be’ or ‘take chances, make mistakes, get messy’ but those feel redundant... and, I stole that last one from Miss Frizzle. Although... that is pretty sound advice. Maybe I’m onto something there. I’ve tried finding life advice that was a little outside the box from some of my favourite movies... but I’m not 100% sure how I can make building up an immunity to Iocaine powder a good life skill. I mean, it worked in the Princess Bride. But is Iocaine even available over the counter? Inconceivable.
But I digress. Graduation is an exciting time! I still remember Kelly's speech all those years ago when we left NSER. She made it personal! About us. Well... mainly me and my clumsiness. Somehow though I don't think the shower story would really fit in here. But, if I can work it in, I will for you Kell!
I've watched several commencement addresses in the last week and took the same thing away from all of them. Be different. Stand out. Don't give the cliché speech about following your dreams or the best is yet to come. Well that's easy enough to avoid I think. I'm can be quite a cynical person. And I've always been a little different. It took me a long time to decide what I wanted out of life. And now, at the age of 30, I’m finally doing what I love. I have found my passion, my calling and my art form. I've found friends with common interests. I have instructors who let me take chances and make mistakes. And I have a family who has always pushed me to be the best I can be no matter what the circumstance.
I want people to remember what I say, but more importantly, I want them to remember the things they learned at Kingstec. How to be kind, to show empathy and sympathy. To support others and to always remember where you came from and allow that to push you along to where you're going. To think critically about the opinions of others... and your own. And most importantly, be yourself. Be proud of what you've accomplished, but don't forget that the people around you are accomplishing things too.
I'm probably not the best person to write this speech. But writing this blog has proved to me that I can in fact complete some thoughts. Now hopefully I'll come up with an exciting valedictorian speech by the end of the week. Or I'll find one online I can plagiarize... oh wait... there's probably something about that in the student handbook.
Thanks for reading lovies. Please leave me some feedback. I am VERY open to speech suggestions and thoughts!