On this beautiful day, we could feel the warmth of spring approaching, Manabiya Yumenomori held its second graduation ceremony. Watched by distinguished guests and current students, our third graduate was born!
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
The students arrived at school, wrote messages to the graduates, and made final confirmations for the ceremony. Selected students from junior high school placed flowers on the chests of the graduate and his homeroom teacher. It was a heartwarming moment to hear “Congratulations on your graduation!” and “Thank you”. The time to say goodbye was approaching.
The ceremony begins as the guests enter. The graduates enter the hall with live piano and violin accompaniment. The piano is played by a designer from Yumenomori, and the violin is played by Yuki Shimada, concertmaster of the Shinshu Alps Symphony Orchestra, who also helped us with the opening ceremony. He came to the school early in the morning to prepare. Thank you very much!
Principal’s speech (excerpt)
When I asked him, “What is important for a scientist?” he immediately replied, “Don’t be afraid of failure. There is a 99.9% chance that research will fail.” I was impressed by his immediate response. Einstein wrote 248 books in his lifetime. The theories that underpin science today may only be a few pages of these. Even these so-called geniuses continued to take on challenges in a world where their batting average was not even 10%, but 1%. However, they did not see their strikeouts as failures, and continued to try and fail. The number of times you pursue what you love creates quality. I was touched by his insight.
Be yourself and step out with confidence on the journey that will lead you to the future. All of us at Yumenomori will continue to support you. I hope that your journey in life from now on will be a glorious one. Congratulations on your graduation.
Below are some excerpts from the farewell speech given by a representative of the other students.
When we were in class together, I was impressed by how he was studying a variety of difficult subjects. In math class, he was doing difficult calculations for 9th grade students, and in English class he worked hard to write essays. His silent dedication made a lasting impression on me. It was fun talking to him during breaks and lunch. He always had interesting things to talk about, and I thought he was good to speak to. We also practiced a play together in 4C class. When practicing the children’s lion dance, I used Naoto’s dance as a reference to learn it. Although it was a short time, he was a reliable presence.
With the signal of “Let’s all sing a song,” all the students sang a song for the graduate. “Let’s sow seeds,” which is also sung in the final scene of the theatrical performance “Kiokunomori” (Memory forest) is a perfect song for the students departure.
Let’s sow seeds
Lyrics and composition by Naohito Sekiguchi
Let’s sow seeds
Spread the branches aiming for the future
Extend roots to days of the past
Connected lives, us
Enrich the yet unseen tomorrow
Wishing on the tree of beginnings
To grow forever and ever
And bear fruit forever
Let’s sow seeds
Spread the branches aiming for the future
Extend roots to days of the past
Connected lives, us
Below are some excerpts from the speech given by the graduate.
I remember feeling very warm during the days when I studied, played, and laughed with you, my juniors, during my everyday school life. I am very happy to have met you all. If I hadn’t been with you all, I wouldn’t have had so much fun. Thank you very much. The days I spent with you all so far will remain in my heart forever, never fading. I also received a lot of support when I was taking the entrance exams. Mr. Nango wrote me a letter of recommendation, and Ben corrected my essays and helped me practice for interviews, giving me a push in the right direction. And above all, I was able to get to this point thanks to the encouragement and support of my family, who have been watching over my growth for the past 15 years. Thank you so much to everyone who has supported me up until now. I would like to thank all my juniors for welcoming me so warmly over the past six months. Please continue to make Yumenomori a success. I am rooting for you. I am setting out on a journey towards my future dream. As a medical researcher, I want to help people who suffer from diseases that are currently incurable. The road to this goal will not be an easy one. I am sure I will hit some obstacles. However, each time I do, my experiences at this school will guide me and help me overcome those obstacles. I will continue to work hard towards my dream.
ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
After the ceremony, we took photos. “I was so happy when my name was called during the congratulatory speeches!” said one very emotional student.
Before the departure, we spent the time doing our final class activities in the waiting room. We saw him off with high-fives! “Congratulations!” “See you later!” “Let’s high-five one more time!” “Good luck!”
The students waved and called out to the graduate until the very end. “Have a great day!” Congratulations to the graduate who has taken a new step towards the future.
