Here I am!

Last night was the second graduation I attended in the last two weeks. My son's senior graduation was dry, boring, and showcased only a few of the highest achieving among the small graduating class of 24 kids. My daughter's class is even smaller with only 13 kids, and her 8th grade graduation showcased each child. It was sweet, inspiring, and each child was the star.

The theme of the graduation was "Hineni" which means "Here I am". The students each prepared a short essay of a hero in their life, either personal or historical, someone who inspired them, lived in the twentieth century, and said "Here I am" in their life.

My daughter spoke confidently and warmly about her grandfather, who served in WWII and was one of the soldiers to liberate the concentration camp, Buchenwald. She was so inspired by him and by his friend who was responsible for liberating and transporting out all of the remaining children in the camp. Another person was ready to put only 50 kids on a train, but this man stood up and said, "Hineni, here I am. I will not let a single child be left behind. We will make this work!" My mom sat next to me, weeping throughout my daughter's speech. 

So, yesterday's debacle over what to wear to graduation was quickly forgotten. Turned out that the dress wasn't the major focus of graduation after all. First, it was covered by a graduation gown for most of the evening, and in second, my daughter was finally able to see that the most important things in life are not how much we have or how much we spend, but the good deeds we do. 

How will you step forth and say "Hineni, here I am" today?