“I’ve always been a rule follower. When they said not to chew gum, I didn’t chew gum. When they said not to use your cellphone, I didn’t use my cellphone. But today, in the spirit of defying expectations, and for perhaps the last time at this podium, I say..."
Early College High School valedictorian Alem Hadzic has gone viral after he took the stage at his graduation ceremony to deliver his speech—just hours after his father's funeral.
"I was jolted awake to my disappointment. The side of the bed to my left was empty. In fact it was untouched. That side of the bed was still tidily made, and that told me two things. One, I really had slept like a rock. And two, my husband had not come to bed at all last night. I wasn’t surprised one bit."
