Apr 9, 2009

A Thursday Ponderable.

Why is it called a Commencement when it’s ending?

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19 comments

1. 1
   on April 9th, 2009 at 8:39 am
   Camille said:

   Because it starts the beginning of their new lives.


2. 2
   on April 9th, 2009 at 8:51 am
   ashley said:

   There isn’t an elegant word for ending? A Conclusion ceremony? Sounds drab and sad…


3. 3
   on April 9th, 2009 at 8:56 am
   dgm said:

   The glass is half full.


4. 4
   on April 9th, 2009 at 9:24 am
   zelzee said:

   High school commencement……….the official end of them listening to parents……………..grown up college kids now, ya know


5. 5
   on April 9th, 2009 at 9:34 am
   Prof. J said:

   Good question!. . . deep.


6. 6
   on April 9th, 2009 at 9:39 am
   Philly said:

   College commencement—pay your own bills now


7. 7
   on April 9th, 2009 at 10:00 am
   Me said:

   It’s a commencement ceremony because it presents a new set of graduates to the world.


8. 8
   on April 9th, 2009 at 10:12 am
   the cheap chick said:

   Commencement = commence living your own life, now and quit asking Mom and Dad for money.


9. 9
   on April 9th, 2009 at 11:18 am
   jennifer said:

   The beginning of the end…of the free ride?


10. 10
    on April 9th, 2009 at 11:36 am
    Golden said:

    That always bugged me too. And yeah, I guess it because it’s the beginning of the rest of your unscripted life!


11. 11
    on April 9th, 2009 at 11:48 am
    foolery said:

    This sounds like a stoner question. Or so I hear.


12. 12
    on April 9th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
    Reeb said:

    I’m with foolery. Yeah, man… Pass the cheetos.


13. 13
    on April 9th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
    Lizzy said:

    Why do we park in a driveway and drive on a parkway? These are just a few of the many questions that keep me up at night. That, and my husband takes up too much space on the bed.


14. 14
    on April 9th, 2009 at 4:34 pm
    sista #2 said:

    They needed a big word that began with C.

    peace
    #2


15. 15
    on April 9th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
    Manic Mommy said:

    Why are they called “apartments” when they’re all stuck together?


16. 16
    on April 9th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
    Chesapeake Bay Woman said:

    I had to pass through Foolery’s terrain to get here, and all I can say is:

    Come mincemeat?


17. 17
    on April 10th, 2009 at 12:18 am
    Stimey said:

    THANK YOU! I get that graduates are embarking on a new chapter of their life, but ever since I was a kid, calling it commencement confused the hell out of me.


18. 18
    on April 10th, 2009 at 2:05 am
    Margie said:

    Alright Gallagher- enough with the brain teasers- now bring out the Sledge-O-Matic!


19. 19
    on April 14th, 2009 at 11:30 pm
    Angie @ KEEP BELIEVING said:

    I thought commence meant end until I was 22. I kid you not. I am an engineer/accountant and vocabulary is not my fortay.