SALEM – “Four years ago, I came here an excited and slightly nervous freshman, but now I leave an excited and slightly nervous graduatenot knowing where my feet will take me,” said Valedictorian Taylor Talmage during the graduation exercises Friday night for 59 seniors at Mount Abram High School.

Zach Brochu, senior class president, led the gymnasium full of family and friends of the graduates in a moment of silence in memory of former President Ronald Reagan.

Salutatorian Aaron Shorey began his welcoming address by observing, “At this point, it is strictly theory,” since he had not experienced life after graduation. “The meaning of life is living. Life has two points, a beginning and an end. As we go along there are some highs and some lows. It’s what in the middle that really counts, ” he said.

Shorey acknowledged his classmate Justin Howard, who was not at the ceremony because he is currently serving in the Armed Forces. The salutatorian quoted Reagan, reminding graduates, “We are the showcase of the future.”

“My only regret is I should have taken notes,” admitted Shorey. He encouraged everyone to laugh and “give a little bit of yourself.” Shorey then encouraged the audience “to zone out while I have a word with my friends.”

He then turned his back to the audience to speak briefly to his fellow graduates before breaking into the song “Lean on Me.” He summed up his speech saying, “The things I want you to remember from this speech are: Be proud, give, live, laugh and love.”

Mount Abram High School Principal Jeanne Tucker called the Class of 2004 “great scholars and great people.” According to Tucker, of the 59 graduates, 86 percent will be going on to postsecondary schools. “This is the highest percentage in the history of Mount Abram,” she said. Tucker announced the recipients of 144 grants and scholarships, totaling more than $67,000, from the communities of SAD 58.

Keynote speaker Thomas Reynolds, professor emeritus at the University of Maine Farmington, shared with graduates that, “The difference between good and great is only about 2 percent.” That difference will provide a person with “the slight edge you need to be successful,” he said.

The Class of 2004 received their diplomas, and Superintendent Quenten Clark pronounced them high school graduates. A slideshow of photos from the graduates brought many in the audience to tears as a steady stream of baby and childhood photos, as well as senior and prom pictures, came into view on the screen.

Valedictorian Talmage gave the farewell address. “It has been a long trip,” he said, “but we made it.” He offered these words of advice to his classmates: “To succeed, we will need to keep learning. Your experience is what you make of it. Follow your dreamsDon’t spend life endlessly preparing for the future. And lastly, forget everything I have just said because if you take life too seriously, you won’t have any fun.”