The Guest

The students at Sycamore High School were gathered in the gym. During the middle of their first-period class, the principal had made an announcement for the teachers—they needed to assemble all the students in the gymnasium. Clint had not failed to notice his teacher looked as surprised as everyone else in the class. He also was sure she had not been expecting the announcement because she had been about to hand out a quiz for the class to take.

As they walked down the hall toward the gym, Clint looked around and noticed all the students seemed just as puzzled about what was going on as he did. He heard several teachers behind him whispering and realized with certainty that even the faculty didn’t know why they were being asked to gather in the gym.

The students, despite their excitement of being out of class, were unusually quiet as they made their way to the gym. It was as if everyone realized there was about to be some major announcement. As the principal made her way to the microphone, an eerie silence descended on the room. The principal’s voice reverberated across the room as she picked up the microphone and began to speak.

“Students, faculty, and staff, I know you are wondering why I have asked you all to join together in the gymnasium on a day when we did not have any planned activity.” She paused for just a moment before continuing. “We have an unexpected guest at our school today, and I know that every student here will join with me in giving a round of applause to our surprise visitor. This person once attended Sycamore and is one of our school’s most well-known graduates. Please give a round of applause for our governor.”

Cheers erupted through the crowd before the principal could even finish giving his name, even though all the students knew who he was. Only last year, he had helped schools across the state receive special funding so every room had been supplied with much needed technology. All the parents might not agree on politics and opinions, but the students could all agree that they were proud that the man standing before them was a graduate of their school.