Efrian Sedillo Margate
April 5, 2009
Our beloved parents, honored guests, the Board of Trustees, School Administrators, Faculty, fellow graduates, friends, ladies and gentlemen, a pleasant morning to all of you.
It is with distinct pride that I talk before you today and an honor to pay tribute to our dear parents.
Not so long ago we were brought into this world, so vulnerable, heading to a journey of uncertainties.
Who would have thought that we would be here today? Can you still remember your first days in kindergarten? When you became so insecure when your mothers or fathers disappeared from your sight? I remember I cried when my mother had to leave me in the classroom. So fragile, so innocent, very dependent and immature as we were we thought we couldn’t survive a day without our parents on our side. With our young minds then we didn’t think that they had to leave to rush to work or get back home to attend to other siblings and household chores. But with each passing day we became familiar with the school life and we became drawn to the new environment friends, new learnings and experiences yet at the end of the day you found your mother or your father at the doorsteps with open arms welcoming us in some days drenched in the rain with a lunch box in one hand and an umbrella or raincoat in another.
They have never stopped playing those roles for us even until today or maybe even after we leave the portals of our alma mater.
As we journeyed through college life, new things came. We wandered along and met different people, new friends, and unforgettable acquaintances. Some of us have to be entrusted to the care of landlords or landladies in dormitories or boarding houses. We began to hide things, kept secrets and became a little far away from our parents. For some of us, college life was an opportunity to live independently away from the watching eyes of our parents. We continuously explored the things this world could offer. We started to make choices and decisions on our own without knowing or simply disregarding the possible consequences ahead.
Who would forget the long debates or heated arguments over extended hours of stay in school to finish school works and requirements? The staying-overnight at a classmate’s home orboarding house, to bit the deadlines for case presentations and relentless research works?
We have demonstrated insensitivities many times on occasions wheretuition fees, allowances and weekly allotment don’t come on time in our ATMs. We hated you and compared you with other parents when you didn’t give the less important things to satisfy our whims. We thought other parents were better than ours.
We failed to understand the difficulties and challenges you all faced to keep us in school. We disregarded the “no buying personal stuff policy” you set for yourselves to prioritize our needs in school. The pressure of our demands pushed you to sell some properties, big or small ones. The different loans you had availed to make sure every enrollment time, we have money continue our education. Because you believed, education is not merely a parents’ responsibility but a priceless gift parents can bestow to his sons or daughters.
Many of our dear parents had to take the pains of leaving their families for employment overseas to secure their children’s future, withstanding the hardships of work not to mention the daily longing of the comfort of a family. Forgone holidays to earn extra pay to send back home and yet we didn’t even care to say “I missed you” or “I love you” when you they were home.
For all of those things, we like to say we are SORRY for not having thought of the sacrifices you had to endure for us. Graduates, kindly hold your parents’ hands (long pause) and together we say “I AM SORRY”.
Today as we celebrate this momentous event, we would like to thank you for the unconditional love and support you provided us to bring us all to this success. For the beautiful lessons you taught us, the compelling values you inculcated everyday of our lives to be better persons, the many times you accepted us back in your arms the countless times we faulted and hurt your feelings, for forgiving every lie and mistakes we made, for being our protector in the presence of our aggressors and for reaching out despite our indifferences, (long pause).
A thousand words may not be enough to show our gratitude. We want to dedicate this success we share today to all parents who are here and most importantly to those who are not with us today. We thank our Heavenly Father for giving you to us.
To our parents ( long pause)… thank you,.. thank you… very…. Very…. much!( long pause).. you deserve this more than we do!
Good Morning!
