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Diplomas testifying to so much more June 1st, 2020
By Patti Radle
(Mrs. Patti Radle is president of the San Antonio Independent School District Board of Trustees & a longtime JPIC Committee member)
Dear Graduating Class of 2020:
San Antonio is such a compassionate city. It is easy to understand why we have such caring people working in our school systems. Understanding compassion to be the ability to recognize and sympathize with the pain of others, it is with this position that the hearts of teachers, staff, parents and siblings suffer with you.
We have seen you dream for 12 to 14 years of donning the gown and cap, and walking across the stage to finally receive that piece of paper that says you are accomplished and ready for your future.
We will celebrate you! It might not be what you imagined with the full pomp and circumstance of the traditional ceremony — that exclamation point of all your accomplishments. This virus has us all trying to figure it out, abiding by safety guidelines. In person? Virtually? A combination?
How can you — how can any of us — handle this disappointment?
Perhaps it is possible with a different vision. You will have the diploma to hang on the wall. But if you pay close attention to everything happening around you today, it will tell a very different story that will define a milestone in your life and the life of the world. Not of a walk across the stage but of a walk through a very extraordinary time.
You can tell your children that the diploma on the wall stands as a certification of living at a time:
Read the full story at San Antonio Express-News.
