![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
J's Graduation
Jun. 26th, 2008 07:50 amThis was the most ungraduation graduation I've ever been to. It was more like a talent show. lol
We entered the theatre of the local high school, where J had gone last year, to a slide show of all the students interspersed with quotes from them about their experience in Middle College.
They were proud to be unique individuals and not people that fit into the "cookie cutter school system", so proud that J's Aunt Shirley and I were left feeling less than because she actually loved high school and I got through it. I hated aspects of it, sure, but I made my own space within the "cookie cutter" system. Come to think of it, I was a defective cookie. If I'd had an alternative like J and his classmates did, maybe things would have been different for me.
The ceremony began with a few bars of Pomp and Circumstance that stopped and started and stopped again and was replaced by a 1970's rock tune that J had described as "...obnoxious that gets stuck in your head." The rest of the ceremony knocked it out of my head but it was a tune I liked. They came out two individuals at a time from either side of back stage dressed in all kinds of outfits. There were no caps and gowns for this crowd! They greeted each other in various ways, some hugging, some high-fiving, some dancing a step or two, etc. and split back apart to go down the side stairs to the front rows of the orchestra. J and his friend shook hands. J wore nice pants and a dress shirt with the tails out.
Two girls MCed and introduced two speakers, a musical act, gave thanks, flowers and gifts to people who had been part of their experience and kind of roasted their two teachers and office Admin who made their experience possible.
The diplomas were handed out and a movie was shown that was one student's project for the year. It condensed the year's experience into about 12+ minutes. I should check my camera for the exact run time.. I captured it! Brandon's camera battery died partway through. Maybe the student will post it on youtube!
The final thing was a future news report - 20 years from now - given by the two teachers to slides they'd created of all the students. I captured that, too. Thank goodness Eric fixed my camera battery charger!
Gotta go now. It's late! Yikes!
Pictures and videos later.
We entered the theatre of the local high school, where J had gone last year, to a slide show of all the students interspersed with quotes from them about their experience in Middle College.
They were proud to be unique individuals and not people that fit into the "cookie cutter school system", so proud that J's Aunt Shirley and I were left feeling less than because she actually loved high school and I got through it. I hated aspects of it, sure, but I made my own space within the "cookie cutter" system. Come to think of it, I was a defective cookie. If I'd had an alternative like J and his classmates did, maybe things would have been different for me.
The ceremony began with a few bars of Pomp and Circumstance that stopped and started and stopped again and was replaced by a 1970's rock tune that J had described as "...obnoxious that gets stuck in your head." The rest of the ceremony knocked it out of my head but it was a tune I liked. They came out two individuals at a time from either side of back stage dressed in all kinds of outfits. There were no caps and gowns for this crowd! They greeted each other in various ways, some hugging, some high-fiving, some dancing a step or two, etc. and split back apart to go down the side stairs to the front rows of the orchestra. J and his friend shook hands. J wore nice pants and a dress shirt with the tails out.
Two girls MCed and introduced two speakers, a musical act, gave thanks, flowers and gifts to people who had been part of their experience and kind of roasted their two teachers and office Admin who made their experience possible.
The diplomas were handed out and a movie was shown that was one student's project for the year. It condensed the year's experience into about 12+ minutes. I should check my camera for the exact run time.. I captured it! Brandon's camera battery died partway through. Maybe the student will post it on youtube!
The final thing was a future news report - 20 years from now - given by the two teachers to slides they'd created of all the students. I captured that, too. Thank goodness Eric fixed my camera battery charger!
Gotta go now. It's late! Yikes!
Pictures and videos later.
