Editor’s note: The Wanderer has invited student keynote speakers for local high school graduation ceremonies to share their speeches for publication. Below is the speech given by Old Rochester Regional 2025 Valedictorian Caitlin O’Donnell on Saturday in the ORR gymnasium.
Superintendent Nelson, Principal Devoll, faculty, staff, school committee members, administrators, family, friends, and the class of 2025, welcome. It is an incredible honor to be standing here today with such a talented and immensely gifted graduating class.
When I was first given the task to write this speech, I felt lost in the millions of words jumbled around in my mind of what I wanted to say. And so, I decided to embark on a journey through the Internet to sift out the main point that would feel just right, and one night I was even Googling graduation speeches shown on television out of desperation. Of course Troy Bolton, Elle Woods, and Rory Gilmore’s words of advice are most certainly iconic, still nothing seemed to “click.” Until I realized, it was right in front of me all this time, and something which I have held deeply with me these past four years.
Located just below the letter “P” on my keyboard, staring back at me during the hours of scrolling through my computer, was the semicolon.
Now you might be thinking, what does a simple punctuation mark – which we used repeatedly in our grammar worksheets and essays – have to do with graduating high school? In order to answer this question, I must take a quick moment to describe my story.
From a young age, I grew up as a perfectionist. I can remember the days in Kindergarten where I would be the last one finishing up our ABC practice, making sure my tracings didn’t steer off the dotted lines. But once I reached high school, this perfectionism culminated into moments of mental exhaustion. Throughout my years in high school, I have struggled with my mental health. The work that I loved to do began to be extremely difficult, and on some days, even getting out of bed seemed impossible. There were numerous times when I felt my dreams were lost, and that I was trapped in an endless cycle of hopelessness. But it is in these very moments where I encountered the profound meaning of the semicolon.
If any of you remember from English class (which I hope you do by now), the semicolon joins two closely related independent clauses, or completed sentences. While this may be the dictionary definition of its use, to me, it holds something even more valuable than what it does on a simple piece of paper. It replaces the period. Instead of the sentence ending completely, its meaning coming to a close, it continues on. When an author could have ended the sentence, they chose not to.
During the times where I wanted to give up, I had the support of my family, my friends, my teachers, and my guidance counselors who made each tomorrow more possible, for which I am eternally grateful. They shined a light on the beauty of taking one more step forward. I chose to live by the semicolon, instead of by the period. And because of that, I am living out one of the happiest weeks of my life.
My fellow classmates, you are the authors of your own lives, and you’ve each chosen the semicolon already, even without realizing it. You crossed off the days on the calendar, you pushed through the final exams, you got out of bed and showed up today. Our semicolons may look a little different to each of us, but we all chose to add that same little punctuation mark to the end of our sentence. We’ve all decided that this sentence is not quite finished.
Remember, no matter where your journey takes you next, you will inevitably encounter hardship. You will fail a class, lose a few friends, experience heartbreak, make mistakes. But the semicolon reminds us that there is always tomorrow. You will ace a test, build lasting friendships, find true love, discover new lessons and learn from them.
Each of our own little worlds comes with its individual challenges, obstacles, and setbacks. But I urge you all to continue to live by the semicolon, to never, ever give up. If there is anything I have taken away these past four years, it is that life is meant to be lived, not just survived. Life is an inexplicable culmination of love, grief, excitement, joy, anger, and fear. But that is what makes it so beautiful. That is what makes it worth waking up for. That is why we choose to continue the sentence.
Before I conclude, I ask you all to take the time to appreciate the people in your life who have guided you to the very seat you are sitting in, as now I would like to recognize some very important people in my life, who without, I would not be standing up here today. To my fellow classmates, thank you for the fond memories of elementary school, the transformative experiences of junior high, and channeling the spirit of High School Musical throughout the halls at Old Rochester. To my friends, thank you for all of the heartfelt memories, as I will forever cherish the laughter we have shared together. To all of my teachers and guidance counselors, especially Ms. Wickman, Ms. Harrison, Mr. Allain, Mr. Apperson, Mr. McCarthy, Ms. Brunelle, Dr. Janicki, and my teachers at Bishop Stang my freshman year, particularly Mrs. Habershaw, Mrs. Pimentel, Mr. Hurst, and my guidance counselor Mrs. Hamel, thank you for your utmost kindness, compassion, and encouragement. I will hold your words close to me in my years in college and beyond.
But most importantly, I want to take the time to thank my family, who are my guideposts in everything I do. To my brothers, Declan and Aidan, who have shown me how to always find the little moments of happiness and joy in each and every day. To my parents, who have sacrificed so much for me and have shown me nothing but unconditional love. To my dad, who is the most hardworking and resilient person I know. You have always put my needs before your own, and your dedication to our family is never unnoticed. And finally to my mom, who is my ultimate best friend and my sister. You have seen me at my lowest, but you have never given up on me once. I am forever in debt to your endless love and support.
To the class of 2025, I once again urge you all to live by the profound meaning of the semicolon. No matter what may come along your path, always remember that there is so much light that comes from the darkness. For the flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.
Oh, but if you do use the semicolon in a college paper, remember not to capitalize the next clause. It might save you a couple points.
Thank you. And congratulations!
By Caitlin O’Donnell