View From the Legislature

Over the past 21 years of elected life, I have had the pleasure of being able to submit weekly articles on topics related to Manitoba generally, or things happening in the Steinbach constituency specifically. These are articles that I have always written personally. And around this time every year, I have written an article related to the upcoming graduation for local high school and post-secondary graduates.

Admittedly, as time has gone along and I have moved further and further away from my own graduation from the Steinbach Regional Secondary School in 1987, or from my last graduation in post-secondary at the University of Manitoba, it has become harder for me to relate to the realities that today’s graduates face as they complete this phase of their academic life.

This year though, as I write my annual graduation article, it is a little different. I am another year distant from my own graduation but for the first and last time, my wife and I have a high school graduate in our own home as our son prepares to walk across the stage and receive his diploma. So, while I may not be able to relate to the emotions of a graduate at this point in my life, I am experiencing in real time the emotions of a parent of a high school graduate.

Like other parents of the Class of 2024, our emotions are very mixed. Of course, there is the primary sense of pride that we have that our child has come to a momentous time in their life. And, if other parents are like us, they can vividly remember the day that their 2024 graduate started kindergarten and are left to wonder how it all went by in what seems like a blink of an eye. Sure, other parents warned us that the time would go by incredibly quickly, but who knew how right they would be!

And then there is the question of what comes next. For some graduates of high school, they know very clearly what their next step is, whether it is further education, work, travel or other personal pursuits. But for others, while graduation opens many doors of opportunity, they have not yet determined which to walk through. And for parents, we are left to help provide advice and guidance but with the knowledge that these are decisions that ultimately are not for us to make.

And so, for me this is a very special edition of my annual graduation article. Like each year it is my true wish that this year’s graduates, from the various levels of their education, are filled with immense pride and satisfaction for what they have achieved. As an elected representative, I am again encouraged looking at these young Manitobans knowing that they are preparing to become the leaders of tomorrow and take on the inevitable challenges that arise.

But this year especially, I am relating to the parents of our graduates. I hope that each of you have a special sense of satisfaction as your graduate accepts their diploma knowing that in big ways and small ways you had a part in making it happen. For my wife and I, we will join with you in sorting out those mixed emotions but mostly in celebration as we are so proud of our son, his graduation, and the person he has become.

And somewhere in the coming days we will undoubtedly meet young parents whose children are just entering the school system. And we will emphatically tell them to enjoy these years, because they go by in the blink of an eye.

To the Class of 2024 (and their parents) congratulations on this special occasion and important accomplishment.