The Drury High School class of 2015 rocks 'We're Takin' Off' at graduation on Thursday. Left, Nicholas Trombley leaves them with simple advice to 'be happy.' See more photos here.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Valedictorian Nicholas Trombley told his Drury High School classmates on Thursday he couldn't give them much guidance in the ways of the "real world."

But he could leave them with this bit of advice: "Just do what makes you happy."

He'd learned at basketball camp that there were two types of people — contributors and contaminators.

"Contributors are resilient and handle adversity with toughness; contaminators create crises where none should exist," he said. "We all have a choice on whether we want to be positive or negative.

"So surround yourself with contributors and don't let contaminators be a part of our life. They'll only bring you down and prevent your path to happiness."

The 95 graduating seniors at Drury High School had had good times and bad, Trombley said, recalling some of the memories of their four years together. They should dwell on the good and not the bad, he said, because the minor things won't mean much in time.

"We've been conditioned to always think about what is the right decision and wrong decision for many different situations," he told them. "Life is short ... You have to use your time wisely and effectively to do the things that you desire. It would be a waste to do anything that wouldn't give you the happiest live you could possibly have.

"The only advice I can really give you is to pursue whatever makes you happy ... do what makes you happy."

The graduates' response to his counsel was to get up out of their seats and sing to Pharrell Williams' ubiquitous "Happy," one of several joyous musical renditions of the evening that had Mayor Richard Alcombright jokingly welcoming the family and friends to "the rave."

Alcombright, as chairman of the School Committee, presented the diplomas with the help of Principal Amy Meehan. Class President Thane Preite welcomed the gathering and led the pledge, and the Drury band and chorus performed. Superintendent James Montepare presented the class.

Salutatorian Lindsey Gray encouraged her classmates to remember their "inner child" as they make their way in the world.

"When I was little I used to sit on my swing set and wonder how high I could go. I would push and push hoping that each time I'd get higher and higher. I was always looking to the sky and I wondered what it'd be like to reach the clouds.

Today not only am I still that little girl aiming for the sky but so is the rest of this class."

Remember those lessons from childhood, Gray said, such as don't run because time is already moving fast, don't forget your manners, clean your room and play nice. All useful for entering the working world, making friends and moving ahead.

"My biggest piece of advice is that although we will mature I hope all of us let our inner child shine once in a while. Our childhood is what has shaped us into the fine young men and women we are today and I want to remind you of some of the lessons that had a large presence in our lives as we grew up."

Thursday's graduation set up was different than in years past. Family and friends filled the bleachers and seats in the middle of the gym while the graduates faced them from new elevated platforms at the end of the gym, with a large screen above them that let the audience know who was speaking. It also displayed the words to a Drury version of Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off" called "We're Takin' Off" with lyrics by graduates Destiny Crews, Alex Candiloro and Catherine Marceau so the audience could follow along to the song — which ended with the tossing of caps and the popping of confetti.

"And the parents gonna cry, cry, cry, cry, cry; Baby, We'll just wave goodbye, bye, bye; We're takin' off, takin' off."

But before the tears (there were some) and the waves goodbye (there were many), Meehan reflected on their high school voyage, seemingly taking inspiration from the class motto "man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore" (Andre Gide).

"Traveling through high school was like learning to navigate the ocean waters and similar to surfing, trying to catch a wave," she said. "Some days were calm and tranquil. Other days, the rough and choppy waters knocked you off balance."

Navigating the waters at Drury instilled in them skills and knowledge to sail steadily ahead, Meehan said.
 
"A ship in port is safe; but that is not what ships are built for. Tonight, we have reached the time for you to pull anchor and deport from our safe harbor of Drury High School. You are ready to captain your own ship and chart your own course for the future."

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