Allow me to congratulate you on the occasion of your graduation from high school. I would like also to commend your parents who in these times of socio-economic crises, have steadfastly sacrificed so that you can earn another feather in your flight for a better future.    

        As you receive your diploma, which is the fruit of your sacrifices, the product of your persevering efforts and the reward of your hard toil in the classroom, it commences the serious choice for a course you will all commit to undertake in the real world of work. In choosing this, it is important that you must take into consideration your aptitude and capabilities along with your intellectual, physical, and financial status.

        However, as you continue in your chosen field of endeavor, it is inevitable that you will be confronted with the current societal problems such as drugs, alcohol, and other petty vices. Yours therefore, is to choose between the path of good and evil. May God bless you in your continuing quest for education for it is the only weapon a person has against the absolute power of ignorance. I urge you to quickly build your arsenal of knowledge by becoming an insatiable reader of books.