Kabrie Cannon

Hello class of 2022, family, and friends. I know a lot of you were wondering if I was actually going to get this speech done in time, specifically you Mr. Wormald. Without that one day extension I don’t think I would have. 

I have a confession though. When I asked for an extension on Monday, I hadn’t even started, but I did end up getting it done. It might have been at 11:59 that night, but it was done on Monday.

On a more serious note, I just wanted to start off by saying thank you. Thank you to our teachers and coaches whose passion and dedication have shown throughout the last 13 years. You guys have been such an important part in getting our class to this point and making our high school experience all that much better, so thank you for helping us discover who we are. 

Thank you to our parents and families who helped us learn right from wrong and who have celebrated every little success with us. 

I also want to thank the Lord, who guided us through these four years of high school, and who got us here today. 

Lastly, thank you to all of the graduates who pushed through the senioritis to be here today in our caps and gowns, about to graduate high school.

To me high school has felt like a blur. One day we were freshmen then we blinked and here we are as seniors about to close a big chapter of our lives. 

If there is one lesson I have learned from my high school experience, it’s to learn from your mistakes, and others’, because trust me, there have been lots of them along the way. 

Life is full of mistakes that will shape us into who we are and might be even more important than our successes.

We all have failed at one point or another, I certainly will admit it. 

For example, jumping as far as you can on the monkey bars in first grade the day before picture day and face planting in the gravel was not one of Abi Urbach’s and my best moments. But it did make for one memorable school picture. 

As we all have, I’ve made my share of mistakes. Have I learned from all of them? Probably not. And will I, along with most everyone in our class, continue to make mistakes over and over again? Yes, 100%. But no matter how many missteps we make along the way, they will help us grow.

Looking back at the last four years, our mistakes are proof that we made the most out of high school. 

A quote from one of my favorite shows, The Office, Andy Bernard once said, “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.” 

And I think our class did a good job of knowing we were in the good old days and cherishing the times we’ve had in this school. 

As you can see, mistakes are all about learning and defining yourself as someone who overcomes them. As we go into the adult world, we will make even more mistakes. Many of us will probably choose the wrong major more than once and go out to eat one too many times, then realize that we’ve spent all of our money, but we’ll learn from it, maybe. 

So don’t shoot for perfection, instead make the most out of your failures and work hard to turn them into your successes, life is more fun that way anyways. 

So, thank you to everyone who let us make mistakes the last 18 years and for being patient in watching us make them again and again. Thank you for helping us learn from the failures and turn into who we are today. 

It’s been fun growing up with you guys and I wish everyone the best of luck in their future failures that will lead to their successes. 

Thank you.