Fellow graduates, each of us will soon receive our diploma. In a few minutes, this occasion will culminate and soon we will go on our separate paths to our chosen fields in the quest for truth, justice wisdom and the illusive word, SUCCESS. But before we part and bid each other goodbye, let me askyou the meaning of this diploma to our parents, to teachers and to us ….graduates. What is it’s significance to our country? What is it’s relationship to the ideology of the Filipino people? Perhaps, some from this gathering have different views and conception of graduation and the diploma we will be receiving, the significance and importance of quality education to man’s life. I have a few from among a group of people who said that the diploma is a useless scrap of paper, a worthless thing that can never fill an empty stomach nowadays that our nation is suffering or experiencing a great economic as well as political turmoils, a piece of paper is no longer of great value in our present setup where the prevailing law is the survival of the fittest where the strong rules the weak and the weak follows the strong. Indeed, we canmnot fully blame those people for it might have been desperation that caused them to abandon their faith, hope, eagerness and will power to continue their struggles to pursue higher education. But let me tell you, in behalf of this year’s graduates not to lose hope, not to succumb to these failures, to this bitterness…. for life is not that cruel. The man above there never forgets. He is always watching us. He knows when to give and when to take. He is just testing our faith in him and how much we can endure these tests. Can you remember, who is that man who said and I quote, “He who has not tasted the bitterest of life’s bitters cannot learn to appreciate the sweetest of life’s sweets. “ Furthermore, with all those faces gleaming proudly, bubbling with joy, we cannot deny that we, the graduates, are more fortunate than the rest of our brothers who are still groping in the darkness of ignorance. Happy and lucky are we because we have just hurdled the challenges of high school life. That after those years of never ending X’s and Y’s and formulas to memorize in Mathematics, poems to interpret in English, thought provoking experiments in Science, projects, researches, and tough questions given in the examinations, we have graduated at last. Our parents too and our benefactors have their own share in the honor and happiness we are enjoying this evening. Had it not been for their nonstop support, their guiding hands, their inspiring words that put us back into action when the world seemed all against us, gave us strength to keep on, to hold on during critical moments of desperation and indecisions, we will fail to receive the diploma which will be the price of our hardwork. Dear parents, a million thanks for everything. Our teachers also deserve greatly our gratitude and appreciation. They are instrumental to our success in hurdling these obstacles. Without them, all these achievements would be meaningless. My dear teachers, we owe you a priceless debt. We cannot say a word or two to repay your untiring efforts in educating us and molding us to be upright citizens in order to prove that we are really the hope of the Fatherland as uttered by our immortal hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. Beloved teachers, you have played your role so well. Though sometimes we failed to understand you, for giving us pieces of advice which we love to call “sermons”. It would be ungrateful for us to allow your efforts to go into oblivion. Yours is the most noble profession for it builds furture leaders and builders or actors in the drama of life, of the future generation. And so fellow graduates, let us not turn our dreams into nightmares and our hopes to disappointments, for in our hands lie the future of our country. In our success lie the progress and greatness of Filipino nation. Ultimately, let us live up to the expectation of our Alma Mater to be advocate of the virtue of truthfulness, honesty, justice and humility in order to succeed in our mission, after leaving the portals of our school and to become doers and productive citizens of our nation. Now ladies and gentlemen, without much I do, the graduates for the school year 2004-2005 bid you a sad adieu.