Jamie Jensen: It takes courage to accomplish goals

It seems like it was only last year that I was giving my fifth grade graduation speech, but the road to graduation was a long and bumpy one. Along my journey I’ve become a little wiser and a little more grown up through each grade I’ve completed. Now it’s time to start my life fresh out of high school.

Walt Disney lived by a quote that he strongly believed in: “All of our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” This is inspirational and educational. I learned that we can all do it, but it depends on how bad we want our dreams to come true. In order to accomplish our goals, we must have the courage to do whatever it takes.

Although courage is a helpful trait to have, I couldn’t have lasted this long without the people close to me who pushed me forward when I was falling back. I would like to thank my mom and dad before anyone else, because without their help and support I wouldn’t be here today. From starting elementary to starting high school, my parents taught me the importance of my education.

Bre Watt and her whole family deserve my thanks because they’ve graciously opened their home to me, put up with me eating all their food, and my extremely long showers every morning.

Encouraging teachers here at New Vision, such as Chris, Peggy, Dave and Steve, have not only reassured me that I could do it, but they also provided a different learning environment for me to succeed in.

We have all gone through trials and tribulations to get here. As we all can see, New Vision’s graduating class is more of a graduating group than class.

Dropout rates are rising and students need some advice to eventually end up in my place one day. My advice for underclassmen is to keep yourselves motivated. I’ve learned that staying motivated is essential in school to prevent ourselves from falling behind or making the wrong decisions. Your mind is on a one-way road to success when you motivate yourself to accomplish goals and tasks.

Graduating is a moment I didn’t think I would ever experience. It is more than a relief to say I finally made it. Today I can officially say that I am a high school graduate.