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A couple days ago, I attended a graduation ceremony of some friends at Penn State. (The ceremony was for graduate students, MA's and PhD's.) The new president of the university did her best to tout the blisses of higher education.

At one point in the evening she asked all those who were first generation graduates to stand. The crowd clapped for them. First generation grad students were also asked to stand. The crowd clapped for them.

These thoughts crossed my mind...
What if we would also clap for those who used their time to raise a family, serve their neighbors, or serve the King instead of going to college? What if those who spent four years cleaning the halls and restrooms would also get to walk across the stage and receive a certificate for work well done?

In a similar vein..
Why do we have anniversary celebrations but not similar celebrations for singles who have served the church well?

Good point. We (Catholics) do celebrate those who serve Christ well. Some even receive an annual feastday to remember the example they set.

Ernie wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 7:29 am A couple days ago, I attended a graduation ceremony of some friends at Penn State. (The ceremony was for graduate students, MA's and PhD's.) The new president of the university did her best to tout the blisses of higher education.

At one point in the evening she asked all those who were first generation graduates to stand. The crowd clapped for them. First generation grad students were also asked to stand. The crowd clapped for them.

These thoughts crossed my mind...
What if we would also clap for those who used their time to raise a family, serve their neighbors, or serve the King instead of going to college? What if those who spent four years cleaning the halls and restrooms would also get to walk across the stage and receive a certificate for work well done?

In a similar vein..
Why do we have anniversary celebrations but not similar celebrations for singles who have served the church well?

It was a specific ceremony to celebrate a specific type of achievement. A birthday party is for a specific person, who, in actuality, is only one day older. Everyone there meets that criteria, but only one is 'celebrated'. But as to your point about wedding ceremonies - point well taken. Those who are not married are passed over in many other ways as well.

Neto wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 8:01 amIt was a specific ceremony to celebrate a specific type of achievement. A birthday party is for a specific person, who, in actuality, is only one day older. Everyone there meets that criteria, but only one is 'celebrated'. But as to your point about wedding ceremonies - point well taken. Those who are not married are passed over in many other ways as well.

My point is that western society values formal study, and downplays the value of raising family, manual labor, and menial service. They don't celebrate 4 years of clean hallways and bathrooms. They don't give them plaques for 4 years of faithful service. Western graduates don't typically share their wealth with others in the company/organization who helped them become financially successful professionals.

Ernie wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 10:09 am

Neto wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 8:01 amIt was a specific ceremony to celebrate a specific type of achievement. A birthday party is for a specific person, who, in actuality, is only one day older. Everyone there meets that criteria, but only one is 'celebrated'. But as to your point about wedding ceremonies - point well taken. Those who are not married are passed over in many other ways as well.

My point is that western society values formal study, and downplays the value of raising family, manual labor, and menial service. They don't celebrate 4 years of clean hallways and bathrooms. They don't give them plaques for 4 years of faithful service. Western graduates don't typically share their wealth with others in the company/organization who helped them become financially successful professionals.

I’m guessing that a graduation ceremony will probably not be a place where one feels like we have a very well-rounded country in terms of what type of occupation/education are valued.

But I do have to say that I think first generation graduates deserve a hand clap. I wish the difficulty of that were more appreciated in conservative anabaptist cultures. It’s hard when you don’t have trusted people you can turn to with questions about what to expect, or do, etc. etc.

Ernie wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 10:09 am

Neto wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 8:01 amIt was a specific ceremony to celebrate a specific type of achievement. A birthday party is for a specific person, who, in actuality, is only one day older. Everyone there meets that criteria, but only one is 'celebrated'. But as to your point about wedding ceremonies - point well taken. Those who are not married are passed over in many other ways as well.

My point is that western society values formal study, and downplays the value of raising family, manual labor, and menial service. They don't celebrate 4 years of clean hallways and bathrooms. They don't give them plaques for 4 years of faithful service. Western graduates don't typically share their wealth with others in the company/organization who helped them become financially successful professionals.

I walked through the one of the hallways of a local hospital recently. On the wall were about a dozen photos of hospital workers - maintenance workers, cleaning personnel, cafeteria workers, etc - with a short blurb about each giving their name and a summary of the work they do. I thought it was praiseworthy that someone thought to praise the "lowly" workers.

ken_sylvania wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 11:21 am

Ernie wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 10:09 am

Neto wrote: ↑Tue May 09, 2023 8:01 amIt was a specific ceremony to celebrate a specific type of achievement. A birthday party is for a specific person, who, in actuality, is only one day older. Everyone there meets that criteria, but only one is 'celebrated'. But as to your point about wedding ceremonies - point well taken. Those who are not married are passed over in many other ways as well.

My point is that western society values formal study, and downplays the value of raising family, manual labor, and menial service. They don't celebrate 4 years of clean hallways and bathrooms. They don't give them plaques for 4 years of faithful service. Western graduates don't typically share their wealth with others in the company/organization who helped them become financially successful professionals.

I walked through the one of the hallways of a local hospital recently. On the wall were about a dozen photos of hospital workers - maintenance workers, cleaning personnel, cafeteria workers, etc - with a short blurb about each giving their name and a summary of the work they do. I thought it was praiseworthy that someone thought to praise the "lowly" workers.

Our daughter was in the hospital (with twins, then born premature) for around two months straight. There was a hospital worker that maintained her room who was was one amazing lady. She had 11 children. 1 set of triplets, 2 sets of twins, and then 4 single births. Her oldest was 34 or so, the youngest 5. The oldest lives in Spain, and the day when we met her, the youngest was a patient in another hospital. She worked hard, but she was full of happiness in life. She was celebration worthy.