One memory I will never forget was our recent scrappy baseball championship win. We upset the over-confident and arrogant first place team that had many players who played on travel teams. However, I don’t think this would have happened without the tight friendship and community of the team, amazing pitching, and how we blasted Drake’s song “God’s Plan” while we warmed up. Anyway, after a string of tired pitchers’ arms, errors, and questionable calls, we found ourselves down by five runs. A certain player had made two mistakes that inning that cost us some runs. But not one single person on the team got down on him. The whole team simply encouraged him to do better next time. We chipped away at the score through good hitting and scoreless defense. It just so happened that the same player who made those mistakes had an identical play to the one on which he had previously made a mistake. That player executed and was able to make the play. Not only did this player learn from his mistakes, the team cheered him on and he hit in the run that would give us the lead. While we were having a team huddle on the pitcher’s mound, the umpires were making a game-deciding call. During this time of strong tension,
I actually had two speeches prepared for today and I didn’t know which one to go with so I flipped a coin and decided to go with this one. As an English teacher, I’ve always enjoyed the graduation speech where someone pulls out a favorite children’s book and, reading to an older audience finds a new meaning—some nugget of truth from Shel Silverstein or Dr. Seuss. As the 2018 graduates get ready to leave, I found some pearls of wisdom in one of my favorite children’s books, and I figured I’d read you a passage. This comes from “Everything I Needed to Know I Learned from Led Zeppelin:” “Oh oh oh oh oh oh, You don’t have to go, oh oh oh oh oh You don’t have to go, oh oh oh oh oh You don’t have to go Ay ay ay ay ay ay All those tears I cry, ay ay ay ay All those tears I cry, oh oh ah ay Baby please don’t go.” Come to think of it, Led Zeppelin is fairly insipid; there’s plenty of time ahead for you to learn the lessons offered by Led Zeppelin. There’s not much going on there. I think I’m going to go with the other speech…. All right I’ve got three stories for you. Hopefully, when I’m done they’ll all tie together somehow and it will all make sense. If not, well, it’ll just be like any other day in my class. STORY NUMBER ONE: In August, 1983 I started college. There was a guy who lived across the hall from me named Tim Cleary. Now, when you’re in college and you’re meeting new people and you don’t know what to say to them, you have the luxury of one ubiq- uitous question: “What’s your major?” Tim was majoring in mechanical engineering, so I said, “Oh, you’re a mechanical engineer.” And he said to me, “No. Mechanical engineering is something I know how to do, but I am not a mechanical engi- neer. ‘Mechanical engineer’ doesn’t define me, man.” I should mention that Tim was also the first person I met who was from Oregon. But his words stuck with me. I still think about them today. You get to define yourself. Don’t let anyone else label you. You get to say who or what you are. Not your job, not your school, not your teachers. You are not what high school you go to, you are not the mistakes you made in the past. You are not the prizes you won or didn’t win. Nobody gets to tell you what or who you are. Only you get to do that. Remember that and choose wisely.
we started cracking jokes and talking about upcoming homework. The call went our way and prevented the other team from scoring the tying run. After we played another inning of scoreless defense, we were champions. #tooktheW We ran onto the field and jumped onto each other as we were sprayed with water while the other team threw their helmets down and screamed profanities. Even while we shook hands after the game, most of the other team eloquently expressed their frustration to us. I try to imagine what would have happened if our team discouraged that player and treated him harshly because of his mistakes. This experience was not just sweet victory, it was a demonstration of our class community, friendship, and character. Another example of the outstanding Cathedral community was during the eighth-grade championship soccer game. Kids from all grades came to support the team, many of whom I had only known from seeing them in the hallways. They cheered loudly and were enthusiastic about the game. When the game ended and we won, the field was swarmed by red- and gold-clad kids. Everybody was extremely excited that the soccer team had won the championship four years
in a row, an achievement that may never happen again. #4peat However, it’s not only the big things that show a community truly cares, it’s the little things: The good mornings, the high fives, the door-holding, and the general excitement of coming to school and seeing friends. These are the small things that show the extent of the strength of the Cathedral community. Whether we’ll be known as the rowdy class, the athletic class, the good-looking class, or all of the above, Cathedral has had an impact on me and all of my classmates that will stay with us for our whole lives. Before I end, I would like to personally address this Class of 2018. I’ve had a great final year here at Cathedral and that’s thanks to you guys. Shout out to Cooper Kistler, the Student Council President for that amazing Student Council Fair and a great year. Classmates, you have genuinely shaped who I am as a person today. Thanks for the laughs, encouragement, kindness, and loyalty. Remember to show gratitude to those who made your experience here possible. Use the lessons that you’ve been taught at Cathedral, take risks, try something new, and let’s change the world.
STORY NUMBER TWO: In the spring of 2000, during the first big tech boom, I was offered a job at a startup. The work was easy compared to teaching and the money was admittedly better. I remember the first day. I filled out my paperwork, signed up for my stock options, went to my cubicle, fired up my computer, opened up the marketing spreadsheets, and started wondering why I had done this. I couldn’t believe what I had done. I hated it. It was an educational software company, but nobody respected teachers or education. I could do the job. Like I said, it was pretty easy, but it was mind-numbingly dull. After a few weeks, I decided that this was not for me. It might be for some, but not me. People in the office chided me about not being able to cut it in the real world. Between you and me, nothing seemed real about this world. Our software didn’t even work, but the marketing professionals I worked with said that didn’t matter. It will work in v.2. We just need to sell a lot of v.1 and get people hooked on it. I remember the day I quit. I sat in the personnel director’s office while she offered me more money, better benefits, and different stock options. In the middle of her talk, I put my wrist up to my face and said “Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.” She asked what I was doing, and I replied, “That’s my life ticking by, and I have to ask myself what am I going to fill these seconds and minutes up with. It’s not this.” So, think about it: You only have so much time. Believe me, every time I look at this gray beard in the mirror, I’m reminded of that. What are you going to fill it with? Thinking of tricks you can play on your buddies? Dumping trash in a classmate’s locker or on a teacher’s desk? Watching the world on the screen in front of you or being part of the world around you? There is so much cool stuff to do. You guys, of all people, have so many possibilities before you. You can do anything. Get up. Go out. Listen to good music. Listen to bad music. Travel around the world, the country, the state, even your city or neighborhood. There are cool people everywhere. Talk to them.
CHRIS CORRIGAN, Seventh- and Eighth-Grade English Teacher
MR. JONES, MS. NOONEY, CANON CLARK-KING, CANON BAILEY, COLLEAGUES, FAMILIES, FRIENDS, AND—OF COURSE— MEMBERS OF THE CLASS OF 2018, I want to first say thank you for asking me here to speak at your graduation. I’m especially flattered when I think of the resources available to you guys. I mean you could have had anybody do this for you, and you chose me. I should say that I was honored until Cooper told me I was actually the third choice for the job. But it seems Trump had something earlier this week and was out of town. Hillary was already speaking at Hamlin’s graduation. Apparently, she only does one eighth-grade graduation a year. So, you all are stuck with me.
FALL 2018 • RED & GOLD | 35
34 | CATHEDRAL SCHOOL FOR BOYS
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