HURON — Thanking a busy waitress, holding the door open for the people coming up behind or picking up a toy dropped by one of a stressed mother’s kids riding in a shopping cart may not seem like a big deal, but “sometimes little things mean a lot,” Huron High School chemistry teacher Jim Musil said in his address to 2018 graduating seniors on Sunday.
As the 132 young men and women prepared to receive their diplomas and move on to the next stage of their lives, Musil, a HHS teacher since 1986, said they will realize down the road that many of the things they’ve heard their dad tell them as they were growing up will prove to be true.
“You will say, ‘dad, I remember when you said this, or you did that,’” he said. While their father may not remember it as being so important, it certainly will turn out to be to their son or daughter.
“The little things you do, the things you say that you don’t think are important to anybody else, maybe they will be and maybe they are,” Musil said.
In her remarks for the graduates, senior class president Caitlyn McNeil said “this is the time to make mistakes. This is the time to find out who you are and who you want to be.”
Now leaving after four years of high school, they will be on their own, responsible for their own actions and moving on with their lives, she said.
“Step out of your comfort zone,” she said.
Musil said there was a time not all that long ago when the graduates were brought home from the hospital by proud parents.
As they grew, they gave dandelion bouquets to their mothers, drew colored pictures and stick figures of family members that were displayed on the refrigerator and eventually left for kindergarten as moms tearfully said goodbye.
In school, they made Mother’s Day cards.
“No big deal,” Musil said. “Everybody has to make one. You give it to your mom and to her there’s no Hallmark card that is more beautiful.”
He said he wouldn’t be surprised to learn that many of the mothers still have those cards tucked away somewhere in the house.
Then came their first car.
And their first speeding ticket.
“And you were afraid to tell your dad, and when you did all he said was, ‘what did you learn?’”
Musil said people know they are in South Dakota or the Midwest when driving down the highway and the driver of an approaching vehicle waves. It might cause one to wonder who that other driver might be, he said.
“But I guarantee you’re going to wave first at the next car,” he said. “Just remember graduates, you wave with all your fingers, not just one.
“Sometimes the little things you say and do reflect positively, sometimes not,” Musil said. “All these little things, though they may seem small and insignificant to you, say a lot.”
Musil encouraged the graduates to take time after the commencement to find the person in their life who was influential in getting them to this point.
“Find that person, give them a hug, whisper in their ear, ‘thank you,’” he said.
As they move to the next challenge in their lives, they will quickly realize that there are no guarantees. All will experience highs and lows.
“All of those highs and lows are like kidney stones,” Musil said. “They, too, shall pass.”
PHOTO BY MIKE CARROLL OF THE PLAINSMAN
Members of the Huron High School graduating class of 2018 join the Concert Choir performing during commencement ceremonies Sunday afternoon.
