Well, once again it’s the season for graduations. Please bear with me as I venture into the more personal realm for moment since this subject is currently so dear to our own family. My daughter, and technically our baby, graduated from college yesterday. That is quite an event and, this being my venue, it seemed only appropriate to dedicate a chapter to her. Our society has many conceptions of the moment when a young person becomes an adult. It may be 13 years old, 16 or 18 or 21 … all depending on what values and life stages you cherish. However, it cannot be denied that the college years offer an important rite of passage into adulthood and the age of final responsibility. What better time, then, to pause and honor a young person for their academic accomplishments and to help launch them into the next chapter of their lives. Certainly it may come as no surprise to my readers that in my own family such an occasion must generally be commemorated with a poem. I hope that even if you don’t know me you may be able to appreciate these sentiments. Perhaps, others may even be able to use these same words to honor someone in their own lives. But for now, I simply need to take this opportunity and say: Cassandra, I am so proud of you and what you have accomplished. These simple words are my testament to you and to how you have touched all of our lives for the better. Congratulations on your big day and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for you. Love always, Dad.
Dearest daughter, this is quite an occasion
the culmination of twenty-one years
Of hoping and dreaming and planning and praying
of hard work, laughter and tears
This has been the goal and the purpose
of all of your education to date
The moment you tried to focus upon
through all those nights you studied so late
Who could have known on that first day of school
all those seventeen long years ago
When you walked into Eastbluff for kindergarten
that this is how far you would go
From elementary school at
and your six years at CDM
From you’re A B C’s to chemistry
this is where you were headed back then
Every chapter of the life you have lived
each careful step along the way
Has helped to shape the young woman you are
and the life you embark upon today
And as you stand at this juncture
on the brink between future and past
You have so many memories to cherish
from your first day of school to the last
Those memories mostly are people
lives you have touched and who’ve touched yours
Whose voices and faces will live in your heart
long after you sail from these shores
Family, instructors and classmates
roommates and sisters and friends
Many you hope that you’ll never forget
to be cherished from now till the end
All of these people, indeed all of us
who have shared this journey of yours
Are so proud of what you’ve accomplished
and how God has opened the doors
To a future you always have dreamed of
which now lies but one step away
Through this gate of knowledge you’ve opened
and shall venture beyond from today
Cassandra, we are so proud of you
of who you are and all you have done
Of how you’ve tempered responsibility
with a joyful heart and unbridled fun
We respect the choices that you have made
the way you’ve matured and grown
The affect you have had upon others
and the faith you have made your own
It’s unlikely that any parents
could feel more pride than we
Or know more joy on such an occasion
in the blessing a daughter can be
You are all that we could have hoped for
as we prayed so diligently
Through this score of years on your behalf
as we strove upon bended knees
We thank God for your beauty and wisdom
for your virtuous loving heart
For your awesome heart of compassion
for the light you have been from the start
Cassie, this is your day and your moment
and the reason we’re all gathered here
Is to honor you on your graduation
accomplished in only four years
Congratulations, Miss Cassandra
and all our best wishes to you
May God’s blessing be ever upon you
And may you succeed in whatever you do
By Frank Carpenter ©
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