I was joking around with one of my good friends at our goodbye dinner and we began sharing our true feelings about how we felt toward one another. We rotated sharing and it went something like this.
Ryan: "James, did you every know that your my hero?"
James: "Really? Well, you're everything I wished I could be."
Ryan: "Oh James, I can fly higher than an eagle, because you are the wind beneath my wings!"
This was followed by a fair amount of manly hugging and giggling.
I then began to tell James the story of how in high school, at one of the graduations one year, this song was actually sung during the graduation ceremony. It got me to thinking.
I wonder if they were aware of what exactly this song was saying and who it was being said to? So let's begin with the first lyric, "Did you ever know that you're my hero?" Really? A pimply faced 18 year old who managed to show up to class more often than he didn't and who has a 95% chance of misspelling "Baccalaureate" is your hero? What sad existence do you live in when this is your hero? How do we live in a society that lauds the great accomplishment of a student graduating high school along side a life long mentor or a rescue worker. Let's see, a kid goes to school for 12 years and doesn't flunk out or a fireman pulls a baby from a burning building. Now be careful, what if I told you that student had to take Geometry? Holy Crap Ronda, fire up the karaoke machine I gotta reward this kid with some Bette Midler.
This reminds of Chris Rock. For those of you that believe in this sort of thing (I don't, because I don't see color), Chris Rock is apparently African American. Ad for those of you that believe again in this sort of thing, I am apparently what is referred to as Caucasian or Pasty-White. With that being said, feel free to let your mind wonder to Michael Scott doing his best impression of Chris Rock as I recount this joke. Chris Rock tells the story of going back to his neighborhood and talking with people back there and before he knows it, people are asking him to buy them cars or give them money. He asks them why he should do that and they respond "Because I haven't been to jail." or "I take care of my family and support my kids". He then begins a funny tirade yelling at them about how they are supposed to not be in jail and they are supposed to take care of their kids.
Singing this song is a lot like that. We have people sing sappy crap like this at graduations, because we are sad that these kids are old enough to be graduating, not because graduating high school is some hero making accomplishment. Like Chris Rock said, you're supposed to graduate. It's not that big a deal. So here is my hope. When it comes time for high school graduation next year, act like your going to give the graduate a big hug, then right before you embrace, smack them on the back of the head and say, "What are you standing here for? We could have put a monkey in a cap and gown and marched him across the stage tonight and had him do what you just did. Go to college, get a job, and make something of yourself. Quit just standing here Nancy!"
Deep down, I think they will appreciate the encouragement.
