Best graduation day gifts to parents

No one wakes up and suddenly turns into an inspiring teacher, a sought-after engineer or a brilliant lawyer. For anyone to become what he/she wants to be, one needs to attend and do well in school.

In elementary school, one learns to read, write, count and make friends. Then, more reading, writing, counting and making more friends happen in high school.

College is where one begins to learn to think, act, talk and behave like his/her imagined future self.

For the love of knowledge, or for added prestige and income, others pursue graduate and postgraduate studies.

School does not only mean liberation from ignorance, but also expenses and investment.

The fear of ignorance and its unlikely results motivate parents to spend for and invest in their children’s education. Some parents work abroad to achieve their goal of providing their children a much better life and more secure future.

Students must be conscious of their parents’ hard work and sacrifices. Education is one of parents’ many duties.

Children, on the other hand, have the duty to reciprocate and reward their parents. One way of showing appreciation and gratitude is by getting good grades.

Good grades motivate parents to work even harder, knowing that their children value every peso they earn. Good grades make parents happy.

Any determined and diligent student has a chance to get good grades. Braille-educated Helen Keller finished school with flying colors. Elizabeth Murray, a poor girl whose mother died of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), desired to change her life. She worked hard and earned good grades. She was accepted as a scholar by The New York Times and graduated from Harvard University.

A student who does not have a goal in life is like a driftwood or a wandering madman. A goal is what fuels a student to begin and to work hard. Hard work earns for a student good grades that are good gifts to parents.

Good grades mean pride, honor and achievement. They are tickets to brighter and bigger opportunities—from getting a scholarship, to pursuing a degree in a dream university, to landing a great job.

In the world of work, good grades save an applicant from having to stand in line with other jobseekers.

Good grades mean walking ahead of others and getting better chances to work with great people. Good grades take one to greater heights and a wider world. Good grades are manifestations of one’s proper use of God-given gifts. They are proof of one’s focused ambition not only to live a better life, but also to bring happiness and pride to self, to parents and family.

But with good grades comes great responsibility to prove one’s real worth, ability and capacity. Good scholastic achievement is best paired with good character because, as they say, good grades can bring one to the top, but only good character can keep him/her up there longer and much loved by colleagues.

May every student grow up good and strive to reward their parents’ labor and love with good grades.