The Evening of the Party

... the first high school graduate in our family ...

At Ross Shepherd High School the grad comes in two parts.

 The first day the graduates walk across the stage.

 The second night is the banquet preceded by a group portrait on the steps of the legislature building.

 I was fascinated about how this would be done -- so many kids gathering at 4 pm sharp for that picture!

Anita dropped Dalton and me off on the legislative grounds.

I milled around in the background, not being able to keep my eyes off of the beautiful formal gowns, the women with their hair elaborately braided, the men in new suits and shiny shoes.

Some of them new not to treat them as runners and when gingerly beginning to scramble over barricades as though they had on runners, and then backing up again.

Photographs were being taken -- not too many selfies.

Mostly parents were taking picture of groups of friends who clustered here and there, all of them dressed up for the banquet which was to follow the picture, but at a different venue.

 Not too many people can boast that their group high school grad picture occurred on the steps of the legislature.

Dalton had different groups: those he had been in classes with; those he had performed with in plays and musicals; those he had done group work with; those who had been in clubs with him; all of them new friends, since he had entered high school in a new city.

Anita kept her camera in focus as groups of kids gathered, all wishing each other well.

Who deserves the biggest bouquet at the grad event is the person who does all of the chaufeurring, in this case, Anita.

She appears in few of the photos.

She was the driver to the group photo, to the banquet, and to the after-grad party, an event that lasted well into the morning hours of the next day.  As well she was the driver bringing Dalton back home in time for work the next day.  There is a special place in heaven for parents like her.

Arta

Dalton's High School Graduation

Grad Night for Ross Shepherd High School, Edmonton

There are some rites of passage that can’t happen enough times, though we only get one chance to do it ourselves: high school graduation.

But lucky those who have children and then grandchildren to watch.

Dalton’s class was a big one: 600 students. 

Doral had the calculation done before hand: how many seconds each grad would have on stage.

He estimated 10 seconds and he was correct; that is how long it took for the students who’s last names started with the letters A-K. Then the students got the idea of how this was being done and they sped the event up on their own, only about 5 seconds between the calling out of each name.

No diploma inside of this folder!

Ross Shepherd High School is a pro at graduations.

The balloons decorated the venue, Grecian pillars were on the stage and a white arch through which the students walked was the centrepiece.

Some of them stopped for their first second of immortality, posing for family and friends, or doing a small dance, or hugging the principal just a little too long.

Doral thought that Dalton would either do a full rolling tumble and end up on his feet or nothing at all. It was the later.

The tassel on the mortar board was flipped from left to right by the principal. Of the whole 600 students, he only pulled the tassel right off on one of the student’s hats.

  .... Dalton and Arta leaving for the grad evening ...

If each of the 600 grads brought only five people, as Dalton did, there would have been at least 3,000 people there, either lining the halls or queuing up for the stairwells to get in and out of the arena.

Dalton said it was an event, watching all of the people he has known for 3 years walk across the stage.

Some he has been in school productions with, or in classes with or has known as close friends.

 Five seconds for each can bring back a host of memories.

 .... Meighan and Doral in the audience ...

As well, the school website has a confession page.

Dalton liked following along on the Facebook site, even telling us later that when people who were really hot walked across the stage, that hit the confession page went bezerk.

Thank goodness for texting.

Dalton had a new suit – well he felt he had two new suits, since a different vest, shirt and tie were also purchased, so if not two suits, at least two looks.

LtoR: Arta, Ron, Ceilidh

Ceilidh was on a campout so she missed Dalton's graduation night
The next day she was busy at a Lacrosse tournament.
Now there is a game no one else in the family has done yet!

He had finished all of the courses needed for high school graduation in January, so his diploma came in the mail in February.

 Others of his classmates were handed a diploma. Dalton laughed when he could see he was only handed a blank folder, but then who needs two high school diplomas when one will do.

 LtoR: Meighan and Dalton:
"Finally the evening is over.  Now to the restaurant."

We went out to Boston pizza when the evening was over: Grandpa Ron, Doral, Anita, Meighan and Dalton.

 A good night for all, since the appetizers were buy two, get the third one free.

Congratulations, Dalton.

Arta