Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, honoured guests and a very special greeting to our St. Michael’s Graduates of 2019. I always look forward to attending this graduation ceremony and am honored to bring greetings on behalf of the school division. This graduation ceremony, has a little extra meaning for me, as this will be the last graduation ceremony I attend as Superintendent of Schools for Holy Spirit, given my retirement at the end of December. So as your graduation theme suggests, “It’s Moments That Matter”, this moment matters.
We wake up everyday and are often lulled to sleep because of our daily routine. Maybe we wake up at the same time or eat the same thing for breakfast or have the same classes or… We get caught up in our routines and not that routines are bad, but sometimes we forget to take ourselves off of autopilot and really enjoy life. Sometimes we forget about the magic of the moments we are experiencing daily and instead, only look for those gigantic moments. We remember those incredible moments, weddings, births, graduations, victories but forget about the ordinary moments that often are far more impactful.
If we truly believe that it’s moments that matter then we must recognize those moments, not just in the extraordinary but in the ordinary. Simple things like manners, saying hello, giving someone a smile or lending a hand are moments that you might believe are ordinary but to someone else, those gestures, those moments, might be seen as extraordinary.
Each year when I meet with our new teachers I talk to them about the impact they can make on a student and often never know it, because it was one of those ordinary moments. While that is great advice for new teachers, it applies to all of us. We all have the ability to make the most of each moment and to make an impact on everyone we meet.
We live in a world that often doesn’t value those ordinary moments. Yet this small school and the community of Bow Island values these ordinary moments better than most. God’s kingdom, with His quiet whispers and His warm light lives here in the simplest of moments. Every time I walk the hallways of St. Michael’s I see how ordinary moments are made extraordinary, just because of who you are and what you do.
Graduates, you have been blessed to be part of this school community that understands, believes and acts knowing that “It’s Moments That Matter!” Now it is time for you to ensure that you carry that understanding, those beliefs and your actions forward making every moment matter!
I wish you my sincerest congratulations on behalf of the school division and may God bless you in all of your future endeavours knowing that “It’s Moments That Matter!” Thank you!
