My College Graduation Speech

Fellow seniors, family, faculty, and all Kingsway students, as I was getting ready this morning, it hit me that today is the day. Today is the day I will walk across this stage with the class of 2018, and finally receive my diploma. I have attended Kingsway College since Grade 10, and I’m truly honored to be speaking today to my classmates. Two years ago, I arrived here without much knowledge in English. In fact, I was proud of myself being able to speak both English and French at the time. But it turned out that Mr. Langevin had a hard time understanding both my English and my French. I hope that today, my speech is understandable. Thanks to Davia Johnson’s English 101 class in my Grade 10 year. Thank you for waking up early in the morning to teach me the difference between the word “corn” and its plural form “corns”.

One of the things I am most grateful for about Kingsway, is that I was able to know a lot of amazing people like Davia. Thank you for becoming friends with a girl who speaks weird English from time to time, and thank you for taking care of this girl whenever she needs help. For this reason, Kingsway has become my second family. I am thankful for all those who share their love with me.

I didn’t grow up in a Christian family as most of you do, I had no idea who God is and what the Bible says before coming to Kingsway. It was not until I met all the lovely people here, when I started to think, “these people are so nice to me. They offer me help and care without asking for anything back. Maybe, this is the power of God, or perhaps, they are acting like God.” This was my first impression about God and Christianity, I call it “a spirit of sharing love”. This kind of spirit motivated me to learn more about God and to share my love with others, I wish to offer them as much help as I can. Throughout the past four years, our class has also reflected this spirit in many of the things we’ve done. Some of us volunteered in the enrolment office and in the dorms for Alumni Weekend, Preview Weekend, and graduation weekend. Some people have gone to the Grandview school and got to help little kids to have a good time despite their disabilities. Davia and I have been volunteering at the College Park Elementary School. And aerials have also done a show for people with disabilities. In fact, there are just so many times when people went beyond social norms to help others. During the past four years, we have truly grown up a lot, from nervous freshmen to mature seniors.

We are all young adults now ready to face the world and whatever it may throw at us. Some of us will pursue higher education in college or university, some may take a gap year to gain new perspectives, and some will join the workforce. In a few short months, many of us will begin that new and somewhat intimidating chapter of our lives. We will pack up our bags and say farewell to the friends and family that mean the world to us. However, I firmly believe that through carrying this spirit of love and sharing it with more people in the future, we will make a better world by brightening up people’s life with our love. As I was preparing the speech, I also thought about some other advice I could give to you. I urge you to measure the level of success with joy rather than seeking wealth and materialism as too many do these days. A happy life is a successful life, no matter what job you hold or how much money you make. Don’t stress over school work too much as I used to.

After all, it has been said that no one on his or her deathbed has ever said, I wish I had worked more. Also, have a joyful life wherever you go, explore everything life has to offer, treasure those around you, love the place you are at, and engulf every breath of air with the purpose of becoming someone better than you are today. And most importantly, remember to share your love with more people. In the end, I’d like to share one of my favorite Bible verse with you. 1 John 4:9-12 says, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” Class of 2018, Good luck, and God bless. Congratulations, we did it!