In spite of many minor annoyances (I think the Minor Annoyance Fairy was spending the day with us...such as dropping my underwear in a sink full of water...dropping a spoon in a crack by the stairs while feeding the kitties, dropping the hose getting sprayed while putting fresh water in the bird bath, McDonald's forgetting my straw as we stopped for road food, one small detour....) we made it to the stadium by 10:00 AM and met our friends who saved us great seats. We had a perfect view of the podium, and I took many pictures. Here are a few.
President Obama before delivering his address to the graduates and guests
No matter what politics you may follow...I think that having the President of the US speak at your commencement is an honor. While sitting in the stadium I did a lot of people watching. I heard that some people had brought a big sign saying something negative...I think it was about Obamacare...but I did not see that sign. It could have been behind me in C deck. That is the only thing I have heard negative about our President. Most people I observed were excited and talking about how great it was to have the President there.
I liked his speech. He talked about how the students need to follow these two things: Participate and Persevere. He spoke about citizenship and its responsibilities. It was a fine speech for a commencement with enough humor scattered through to balance the serious message. The crowd was enthusiastic and responded with loud applause many times.
President Obama was given an honorary doctorate of law from the Ohio State University. After that, he donned an OSU baseball cap bringing loud cheers from the crowd.
I feel fortunate to have been able to be there. I am glad that our country has a great leader in President Obama. There are times he has disappointed me...but on the whole...I feel he has overcome many obstacles...not only to become the President...but to lead us. Thank you, Sharon, Dan and Jon Harris for inviting me.
I could say more...but have decided to add some of the pictures I took.
President Obama saying good-bye.
When I heard he was going to give the commencement speech I thought I wish I could be there! I too feel he has been a great leader for our country although a few disappointments as well...but who is perfect right? I was fortunate enough to hear Hillary Clinton speak at my nieces graduation at New York University a few years back...it was awesome as well!
ReplyDeleteOh wow...I would have loved to have heard Hillary.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous experience! President Obama has lead us through some difficult times with grace and courage, never stooping to take the low road. I heard excerpts from the speech over the radio- I am sure he inspired the new graduates. And thank you for the photographs, I love the first one in particular, with the President deep in thought. What an awesome responsibility he carries on his shoulders.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that no matter what your politics, it's an honor to see the President of the United States in person. We were fortunate to see him when he came to Hilliard during the campaign. We took our foreign exchange student and she was in awe. Your pictures are fabulous and really add to your post. I read about some of his humor...the one that made me smile was something about not being able to get up for breakfast at 11:00 in the morning once you have a job and kids. :) I'm glad the audience was respectful and I'm so glad you got to see him. What a wonderful experience.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I love that he talked about participation and persevering - what great things to give our kids.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your experience. I, too was struck by your first photograph of our president. It shows the responsibility of such a high office. A graduation ceremony is a good place to be inspired.
ReplyDeleteI listened to most of his speech live on CNN. It was fantastic. In fact, I even posted an excerpt from it on the TWT Facebook page.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!