To Dr. Luz S. Almeda, regional director of DepEd Region X, Maam; Mr. Randolph B.

Tortola, our schools superintendent, Sir; distinguished guests; Dr. Susan S. Olana, our ever supportive principal, Maam; parents; fellow graduating students, friends , ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. Today is a momentous occasion for us graduating students for this is a day that marked another milestone in our lives that recognizes achievement earned through hard work, perseverance and sacrifices. This is a day that recognizes triumphs over disappointments, frustrations, financial difficulties, and above all, triumphs over losing hope of making it to the end. Today, therefore, is a day to be thankful and to be inspired. Today, however, is not yet the end of all school lifes twists and turns. If it were so, this graduation that we are having this afternoon should have been called Termination Exercises instead of Commencement Exercises. Am I right my fellow graduating students? Yes, because commencement means the beginning; the coming forth from schooling to service . . . service to God, service to our family, service to our community and service to our Dear Country, and specifically for us high school students, the start of a higher level of education which is college. To our beloved parents, we want to thank you for what we are now. This is what we have reached and this is what we have become, because of your gracious support, guidance and love. Thank you Ma Pa, Mom Dad, Nay Tay. We would not be here today without you. Dear teachers, see us enjoy the fruits of your inexhaustible patience in nurturing our young minds to prepare us for better tomorrows. Thank you for the skills, abilities, creativity, and the different opportunities you offered to us. Fellow candidates for graduation, we should also be thankful to our dear Alma Mater, Valencia National High School, for without its fine administration and teachers, we would not have received a great education. Here we have a high degree of academic excellence and whether we intend to continue our education or not, I assure you that we will benefit from what we learned here. Finally, we should be thankful for each other. The friendship that we have made here will last a lifetime and in the same way we have helped each other to survive and succeed in our four years at VNHS. I hope we will continue to be there for each other and to support each other in future endeavors. Very soon, we will make our very first leap to an uncertain world. It would be another arena. Could we conquer it triumphantly? Much depend on us. Could we take the challenge? The knowledge, learnings and values embedded in us in all these years will be our most valuable weapons. It is for us now to use that wisdom for our advancements and success. Life is what we make it! We must be confident that whatever the future has in store for us, we will eventually obtain it, for we have been rightfully prepared to reach our goal. In closing, allow me to leave you this thought of Oscar Wilde. "To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people simply exist." Young ladies and gentlemen, let's be determined to live. Thank you very much and once again good afternoon!