Last week was my son’s high school graduation. It was a special occasion for my husband and I, along with the other parents of the nearly 300 students that graduated from my son’s class.
Yes, you read that right…there were almost 300 students who had to walk across the stage. So you can imagine that it was a long evening.
From the start, the principal kindly but firmly asked that all parents hold their applause until every name has been read. Not only would it delay the evening but it could prevent the next name from being heard.
Cool beans…or so I thought.
For some reason I trusted the parents would be respectful enough of the principal’s wishes to keep things rolling along and not get in the way of another parent hearing their child’s name be read.
After all, we are adults, right? And we are responsible for raising these children that we hope to become productive adults as well…right?
Okay, so the first time a parent ignored the rules and clapped, I thought maybe they didn’t hear what the principal said. Give them a pass.
Then it happened again and again. While some parents only ignored the request to not clap, other parents had to take it a step further. They called out their child’s name or some other stupid thing.
In some cases it was an entire group of people that shouted and clapped. By now my insides are steaming. I couldn’t believe the disrespect. But then again, maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised.
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, a grown man (who was probably in his 50’s) stands up when his son’s name is read and he blows a horn. It was one of those really, really loud ones.
I was in absolute shock. It was just too much for me.
While there was a reprimand given, it didn’t stop parents from continuing to ignore the request to not clap and call out. If I were to guess, I would say that about 90% of the parents failed to comply with the rules.
By the time my son’s name was called (mind you, we are now hitting the R’s), I was having a hard time enjoying myself as I should have been able to. It really bothered me that parents could be so blatantly rude.
I am just as proud of my sons as they are, but whatever happened to graduation etiquette? Parents, it can be hard to hold it in but we have to be a good example.
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Planning a Graduation Party – Part 2
Photo by hmm360 in morgueFile