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VBHS Valedictorian Speech : Sarah Miles

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Contributed by: Sarah Miles on 5/30/2006

Good evening honored guests, teachers, classmates, parents and friends:

Today I have finally reached the age when I am old enough to know better. That, at least, is what my parents and teachers hope for me. At least I have learned that "Good judgment comes from bad experience, a lot of which comes from bad judgment".

I leave today with very mixed feelings. I know that I am leaving behind many friends and that makes me sad. I know too that I have all the opportunities in the world stretching out before me and that makes me happy.

Today I am looking forward to a new life. All that life will be a product of the years I have spent at Vero Beach High School. Many of the things that I do, much of the way that I live, will be shaped either consciously or unconsciously by what I have learned here.

My parents, though, were my first educators. It was they who ensured that I had the opportunity of coming here to school. They have always been there for me when I needed them. Today they are letting go the apron strings, letting me loose on the adult world. I want to make it official by saying it in front of all these witnesses "Thank you, mom and dad".

As I look around me today I see lots of smiling faces. I think perhaps our teachers may be smiling because they have finished with us. I know I speak on behalf of all the graduates here today when I say thank you to our teachers and to our Principal, Mrs. Hudson. They have taught us so much that you cannot find in a book. They have given us lessons, led by example, and they have even managed to instill learning into what were, at times, most reluctant scholars. I would like to mention too the administrative staff without which the school could not function. Our schooldays have been happy days and we won't forget them or you.

As we leave here today, we are heading into the great unknown. My wish for each and every member of the Class of 2006 is that you will discover and embrace a passion in your life. Find your passion, and you will have found your source of enthusiasm, determination, and self-confidence. As the Greek philosopher Epictetus said: "First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do". I hope you all will find the true happiness that comes from fidelity to a worthy purpose.

Let's make no mistake about this: we did have fun here. We made friends, many of whom we will keep for life. We learned a lot; much of which we will, I have to be honest, forget. Yet we also learned things that will stay with us for life. As we come of age this day, I hope that you will live long, laugh often, and love much. As Albert Einstein said, "Life is a mystery to be lived, not a problem to be solved".

Good luck in all your future endeavors and God bless.

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