Below is my graduation speech for the Union Middle School class of 2023.
Like last year, I didn't write the below speech until a week before the ceremony. When I was finally ready, I sat down at my laptop and tried to figure out what I wanted to say, what I wanted to share. Once I had the gist of the theme, it took just over an hour to write everything down. It flowed pretty quickly. Add in some edits (as well as a kind reviewing eye by Mrs. Dunavan, one of our 7th grade ELA teachers) and it was complete.
What's interesting (for me, at least) about this speech is that I practiced it way less than any other speech that I had. At the actual ceremony, I needed my notes less than I had in any previous ceremony. I just felt a flow to my words and what I wanted to collectively share about this promotion class.
When I did practice reciting the speech, I got through it just fine without any emotion or hiccups. However, when I read the speech in front of everyone, I couldn't get out the words for #5. Didn't expect that to happen. Powered through it. Just didn't expect the ability to speak to leave me at that moment.
As I share in my speech, this was a really good class. What I liked most about this class is that every single day, I could meet an 8th grade student who I had never interacted with before and just be amazed by their spirit, their humor, their classwork, everything. We are going to miss this class.
As always, thank you parents for your support over the past three years, thank you staff for your continued dedication to our students, and thank you students for just being you.
Here is the graduation speech. Enjoy.
-Todd
Good Morning Everyone,
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Todd Feinberg, and I have been privileged to have been the principal of Union Middle School for the past eleven years. It is an honor to stand in front of you all today and means a great deal to me. I truly care about each and every one of my Union Tigers. I hope you all will keep in touch.
Wow. What. A. Year.
In fact, what a crazy three years we have all had. Online for 6th grade. Transitioning back for 7th. Then this year. 8th grade.
What. A. Year.
And What. A. Class.
This class is a group of talented leaders, exceptional scholars, and most importantly a group of kind, wonderful, reflective, and often silly human beings. You’ve made us laugh. You’ve made us think. You’ve made us begin to miss you before you’ve even left. And we are going to miss you as you transition to high school, wherever that might be. Congratulations on your impending promotion. You should be very proud of yourselves for this accomplishment.
No Union Middle School promotion would be complete without some final words of advice. Now, some of you who may have been frequent visitors to our front office over the past three years may recognize some of what I’m going to say. I’m going to ask you to indulge me for one final time, even if you’ve heard all of this before. To be brief, I’ll focus on five key thoughts.
One: Your days are made of moments and are but a small part of your journey. It’s great to make good choices to help guide your way, just don’t be afraid to make mistakes. I’d also like to encourage you to be different. Middle school students spend three years trying not to stand out and not to be singled out. My advice as you enter high school is to embrace your differences and make it who you are. After all, there is only one you. It’s sort of your superpower, you being yourself. Embrace it. Be Different.
Two: I’d like to encourage you to work every day on being just a little more resilient. You’re going to be told no from a parent sometimes. It’s possible you won’t get the lead part in the school play. There’s always a chance you might not get into your first choice for college. All of these things are okay. Challenges build resilience and resilience builds character and character builds you into the person you need to be. Don’t assume there’s just one path to get you to where you want to be… because there isn’t. I can guarantee you that being a middle school principal is a much different destination than being a placekicker for an NFL team. Plans change. Be okay with that. Be Resilient.
Three: Assume positivity in your conversations with both friends and strangers. Many of those you meet are carrying mountains. Be someone who helps them climb them instead. Don’t forget to treat others as you want to be treated. I realize that’s something you’ve heard before, but as you get older, it continues to be increasingly valid. Try to have conversations in person rather than on a digital device. Have “facetime” actually mean in-person “face to face” time. Texting often makes things worse, not better. I’ve yet to see one argument end well through texts. Schedule real in person time with your friends, with your family. If you think about all of your favorite memories, how many of them happened in person versus how many of them happened online. Be Kind and Be Present.
Four: Choose your friends wisely. Your circle of friends influences your daily decisions which, in turn, shape you into the person you will become. Surround yourself with people who have the qualities you want to one day have. Be open to making new friends along the way. As you grow, so should your friend circle. Adding new friends along your high school and life journey is a good goal to have. Your future best friend that you never knew you would one day have could be sitting across from you in your 9th grade math class. Simply put, Be a Friend.
Five is a bit longer.
The past three hundred sixty five days have been quite challenging for me, healthwise. The first health scare was a year ago, almost to the day.
Remembering that day, I recall sitting in the ER with my father. He’s asking questions of me, of the doctor. I’m non-responsive with an extremely high fever and severe chills. All I can recall about the doctor is that they were strongly concerned about whatever was happening to me. I’ll later be told that I had sepsis; this is essentially when bad bacteria finds its way in your bloodstream. And as bad as that sounds, it’s actually quite worse.
It was touch and go for the first day or two. It’s amazing what you think about when you’re faced with these life-threatening moments.
Me, I thought of many things, my friends, my family… oddly I thought a lot about Union Middle School, both the staff and our students. I thought about missing this promotion ceremony. I thought about my daughters, my wife, and my fantasy football team (and not necessarily in that order).
But what I thought about most were my sons. They had just turned 7 and I thought of all of the things I might miss. I thought about all of the times I said no to one of their requests to spend some time together. Maybe I had work to do, maybe I wasn’t in the best of moods, maybe I didn’t want to go PokémonGo hunting for the 50th time that week. Whatever the reason, all I could think about in that hospital bed were all of the moments my sons and I never had (or will have) together and how badly I wished I had said yes.
So my final bit to say to you on the final day of your middle school career comes from what I thought could have been my own personal final day… and that final bit of advice is to say yes.
Say yes to staying out a bit later than maybe you should (but still within your curfew, of course). Say yes to a semester abroad. Say yes to homecoming with a friend. Say yes to your tomorrow by starting today. Say yes to when your father asks if you want to go to the mall together. Say yes to lifting the spirits of a friend who seems a bit down lately. Say yes eight years from now to writing a kind card about your impending college graduation to a former middle school teacher who made a difference. Say yes to trying out for the high school field hockey team, even if you’ve never played before. Say yes to taking a calculated risk. Say yes to pushing yourself a bit outside your comfort zone. Say yes to starting a high school club that speaks to you.
Say yes to being different.
Say yes to being resilient.
Say yes to being kind and being present.
Say yes to being a good friend.
I’ll even recommend you say yes to PokémonGo with your children one day in the far, far future, even if it’s for the 50th time that week.
So, to the Union Middle School class of 2023, we wish you the very best. I thank you for being a part of my life over the past three years and thank you for being a part of each other’s journey. You have each brought something very unique and special to Union Middle School. Without a doubt, and I don’t say this at every promotion but, this is a class that we will miss. And miss a lot.
Congratulations, Class of 2023.
And now, the presentation of the diplomas for the Union Middle School class of 2023.
(Thank you to Mrs. Wu for the photo!)
