It’s been a tough year for everyone. It’s been difficult to see friends, family, difficult to travel, a lot of places have closed and a lot of things we don’t need at home have been purchased. However, there’s been some positives too. A lot of us learned how to make bread from scratch, had more time to ourselves to think and self-improve, and we all learned how strong we truly are because we’re still here, we’re still moving forward.
You may be graduating during a pandemic. It’s harder to celebrate, and the ceremony may be smaller or non-existent. Your family may not be able to be there. It may feel like just another day, just another thing, but I’m here to remind you that it is still an accomplishment. Maybe it can’t be celebrated as big as all the graduations before us, but that doesn’t mean it’s not as important. You survived a learning transition that was thrusted upon you, adapted in ways you never thought you could or would, and you survived. You succeeded. You graduated despite the changing world around you.
Perhaps the importance of your accomplishment is lost to you as our post-pandemic world today has become our new normal, but always remember, you just made history. And as you move forward into the world of tomorrow, seeking new things to accomplish, new trials to pass, remember what you’ve survived this last year. Remember that you are strong, you are intelligent, you are able to adapt to whatever life throws at you.
This may not have been a regular graduation, but it shows our ability to endure and thrive like no other year before us. And whenever you feel alone, remember, you are a part of the 2021 graduates, no matter where we are, we will always be united in that one fact.
Congratulations to our 2021 graduates.