Former President George W. Bush spoke at commencement exercises at Southern Methodist University in Dallas this past week. In a self-deprecating reference to his days at Yale University, he said, "To those of you who are graduating this afternoon with high honors, awards and distinctions, I say, 'Well done!’ And as I like to tell the C students: You too, can be president."
I am reminded of a couple of coffee cups that sit on my shelf. One says: “I’m proud to be gradated… I’m proud to be gradiated… I’m proud to be gratuatiated… I’m proud to be done!” The other says: “I have a BA, I have an MA, I have a PhD, Now all I need is a JOB!” I guess the latter is designed for the student with high honors and the former for the one who will one day be President!
Either way, whether at the top of the class or the bottom, students all over America are graduating this time of year. Indeed, my wife and I just returned from another state where our own son, Caleb, graduated from Flight School.
After twelve years of public school, four years of college, a term at Officers Candidate School, and now a year of Flight school, he will tell you himself that he is quite ready to make the transition to the workaday world. I was too at his age. (In fact, my own father used to joke that he knew what I would be when I finally got out of school - I’d be forty!)
Needless to say, my wife and I are very proud of our son for having accomplished all he has at the tender age of 25. And we cannot wait to see what all else God has in store for him in the next 25 years as well.
In doing so, we join with parents and grandparents everywhere across this great land over this past week in acknowledging the tremendous accomplishments of our children. We wish them all the very best; and we pray that the sky is the limit as they now seek to apply their God given gifts in whatever field of endeavor to which they have been called.
I am reminded of a couple of coffee cups that sit on my shelf. One says: “I’m proud to be gradated… I’m proud to be gradiated… I’m proud to be gratuatiated… I’m proud to be done!” The other says: “I have a BA, I have an MA, I have a PhD, Now all I need is a JOB!” I guess the latter is designed for the student with high honors and the former for the one who will one day be President!
Either way, whether at the top of the class or the bottom, students all over America are graduating this time of year. Indeed, my wife and I just returned from another state where our own son, Caleb, graduated from Flight School.
After twelve years of public school, four years of college, a term at Officers Candidate School, and now a year of Flight school, he will tell you himself that he is quite ready to make the transition to the workaday world. I was too at his age. (In fact, my own father used to joke that he knew what I would be when I finally got out of school - I’d be forty!)
Needless to say, my wife and I are very proud of our son for having accomplished all he has at the tender age of 25. And we cannot wait to see what all else God has in store for him in the next 25 years as well.
In doing so, we join with parents and grandparents everywhere across this great land over this past week in acknowledging the tremendous accomplishments of our children. We wish them all the very best; and we pray that the sky is the limit as they now seek to apply their God given gifts in whatever field of endeavor to which they have been called.