I don’t remember much from the last days of eighth grade in Bentonville Middle School. I really don’t remember many of the details of that period of my life and I certainly don’t remember anything specific about the last day of school in the eighth grade.
What I can tell you is that we did not go through a graduation ceremony. This week, I went to my daughter’s eighth grade graduation and I can tell you that the differences in our lives at the same age do not end there.
Many of the eighth graders I saw “walk” this week could pass as adults. That is the boys and the girls. From an old man’s point of view they all seemed to be very aware of what they were doing and what their purpose was. At that same age, I am not sure I knew what day it was most of the time.
The circle of people that this 8th grade class deals with is perhaps 10 times the number of people of which I had regular contact. Although, one way we are the same, is that today’s 8th graders probably do not actually “know” any more phone numbers than I did at that age since they now have all their numbers programed in their phone and don’t have to memorize them. Strike one up for the good old days.
The thing that hit me the hardest about the event was that it was the last eighth grade graduation I would probably go to unless it was for one of my grandchildren. We can only hope that I hang around long enough to see that. I know the time will run quickly and, ultimately, I will regret not giving it more of my attention.
I generally like graduation ceremonies. The 8th grade ceremony made me want to attend the Bowen School of Law graduation. I decided that, I had the time, so I would go and see what the graduation looked like 20 years after my own graduation. I heard the SBA class president remind everyone that all great change in our society is somehow tied to a lawyer who selflessly gave of their time and effort to fight a cause in which they believed.
Federal Judge Jay Moody then addressed his Alma Mater and encouraged the newest members of the bar to go forth and practice law in a civil manner. He pointed out that they were getting a fresh start that will never come again. Their reputations were clean and they should strive to keep them that way. He emphasized that a reputation once lost is very hard to regain. He started off his speech noting that he remembered nothing about the speech he heard when he graduated and was sure no one would remember what he had to say. I hope for the future of the bar that he is wrong and his words are remembered.
I left immediately after the conferring of the degrees. I did not wait to hear people’s names and watch them cross the stage. I had experienced my fill of graduations for the year. I was inspired to go out and start living my own future. You see, the future belongs to all of us. The difference is that some of us have more of it in front of us than others. That is true for all of us, especially those of us way up in CHEAP SEATS!
Bill James is a co-founder of the James Law Firm with offices in Little Rock, Conway and Fayetteville, Arkansas. His primary area of practice is criminal defense. He can be contacted at Bill@JamesFirm.com