There’s a time for joy,

A time for tears.

A time we’ll treasure through the years,

We’ll remember always

Graduation day

(Graduation Day by The Four Freshmen — 1956)

Each year at this time, millions of words are uttered by graduates, administrators and guest speakers at high schools and college commencement programs.

Aside from the startling announcement to graduates of Morehead College in Georgia by billionaire businessman Robert F. Smith that he was paying off every graduating senior’s student loans, it is unlikely that many, if any, of those words will be remembered.

The only reason I remember my commencement at Summit Hill High School in 1957 is because I was one of the speakers. At both of my college undergraduate and graduate commencements in 1961 and 1969, I cannot remember the speakers, let alone what they said.

I had the honor of being the commencement speaker at the graduate division ceremony at my alma mater, East Stroudsburg University, in 2012. I teased the soon-to-be graduates by holding up an envelope saying that the answer to the question ``Is the Tassel Worth the Hassle?” was inside.

At the end of my speech, I opened the envelope. “Hmm,” I said upon inspecting the blank sheet inside. “Well, that must mean that each of you will write your own answer by your works and deeds during your voyage through the rest of your life.”

Despite my attempt at gimmickry, I would be shocked if any of those several hundred graduates remember my ploy to capture their attention.

As this year’s commencement speakers will tell you, trying to keep the attention of their classmates during such an emotional and exciting time is next to impossible. This is a shame, because their wise words are worthy of reflection.

Marian High School salutatorian Emma McClafferty used the words of cartoon icon SpongeBob SquarePants: “You never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.”

Northwestern Lehigh’s Natalie Masetti told her classmates that they need to keep gazing at the stars. “Although school is over, learning is not. We see people who are inflexible, but we have been given the tools to be flexible.”

Palmerton High’s valedictorian Matthew Binder said, “This is not the end; it’s not even the beginning of the end. All it is, perhaps, is the end of the beginning.”

Weatherly High’s valedictorian Nikki Polivka said, “Not everything is going to turn out the way you want it to, but there is one thing you control. You can set goals for yourself, and it is up to you to get there.”

Personalities show up in abundance at college commencements. Speaking at Colorado College, Oprah Winfrey told graduates, “Small steps lead to big accomplishments.”

Actress Katie Homes told University of Toledo women grads , “I want to encourage you to lift up, listen to, and trust one another. Especially now, women supporting women could not be more important.”

NBC-TV Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie told George Washington University graduates, “The diploma you receive today is your own personal monument: to your work, your sacrifice, your passion, your perseverance.”

I still smile when I think of the bogus commencement speech that received so much attention in 1997.

Attributed to famed author Kurt Vonnegut, who was supposedly addressing graduates at MIT, he was alleged to have said, “Wear sunscreen. Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts. Don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements... Do one thing every day that scares you.”

It turns out that this practical advice didn’t come from a commencement speech, nor were they Vonnegut’s words. They were written by Mary Schmich in a June 1, 1997, column in the Chicago Tribune.

Let’s amend Schmich’s suggestions to include this additional advice: Don’t believe everything you read online.

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI | tneditor@tnonline.com