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"In the last 30 years our material wealth has increased in this country, but our self-described happiness has steadily declined. Elsewhere, the people who consider themselves very happy are not in the very poorest nations, as you might guess, nor in the very richest. The winners are Mexico, Ireland, Puerto Rico, the kinds of places we identify with extended family, noisy villages, a lot of dancing. The happiest people are the ones with the most community. You can take that to the bank."

MUCH-NEEDED LIGHT MOMENT: Graduates Matt Zafirovski and Kyle Knight, who were freshman roommates, gave a two-man speech. The world has changed dramatically since the class of 2008 arrived at Duke, Zafirovski commented. "For example, Pluto is no longer a planet."

In a back-and-forth style comedy routine, Matt and Kyle talked about their trials and triumphs at Duke, including the time they went out for the men's basketball team.

Matt: "In truth, our paths were wildly different, but we remained friends and we found a way to play in Cameron after all."

Kyle: "We made the women's basketball practice team. Abby Waner, you can't stop Matt Zafirovski! You can only hope to contain him."

MUST-HAVE ACCESSORIES: Umbrella or trash-bag raincoat.

ONE GRADUATE: Mia Bolling of Richmond, Va., is ready to move on to the next step, she said, which is a few years in the working world before applying to medical school. She was relieved when the ceremony was over. "I was wet and cold, fingers and toes all numb," she said, dripping but happy. "It would have been even better on a sunny and warm day."

-- Jane Stancill

Meredith College

THE CEREMONY: Meredith College commencement, held in the back-up rain facility, Dorton Arena, at the State Fairgrounds.

NUMBER OF GRADUATES: 379

MAIN SPEAKER: Betty Ray McCain, former secretary of the state Department of Cultural Resources, from 1993 to 2001.

WHAT SHE SAID: Under the theme of "Great Expectations," McCain told graduates they should be caring and compassionate, continue learning, be loyal to each other and their school, be leaders, be realistic, be enthusiastic and have faith.

"It's not going to be easy," she told the class. "It will require the best you have to offer."

And McCain showed a sense of humor about the last-minute change of venue, referencing this month's Democratic Jefferson-Jackson Dinner at Dorton Arena, at which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama spoke.

"You may be the only graduating class in Meredith history who had two political candidates come nine days before their graduation as their warm-up act," she said.

YES, YES, OF COURSE YOU'RE PROUD OF THEM: Allen Page, vice president for academic programs, drew an appreciative chuckle from the crowd when he began the diploma presentation ceremony by saying, "We ask you to hold your applause until the end. However, there will be no effort to suppress spontaneous expressions of enthusiasm for individual students."

HIGH FASHION: Nearly a third of the graduates decorated their caps as an expression of celebration and a way to help their loved ones pick them out of the crowd.

Students chose to adorn their caps with their initials, graduation year, messages to their parents and even messages in foreign languages (such as "J'ai fini!," French for "I finished!").

Raleigh resident Nikki Dublin Turner may have had the most unusual cap. Earning a degree in dance, Turner divided her cap into quarters and devoted one to her husband, who is serving in Iraq, one to her family, one to dance and one to God.

"I've been working on this degree for six years," she said. "I thought I should make it special."

BEST OVERHEARD CONVERSATION: Embracing her friend in a hug, St. Louis native Ashley Vaughan declared to Cary resident Preethi Sriram, "We're graduates!"

"I know!" Sriram cried back.

"We're alumni now," concurred Jordy Featherston of Richmond, Va.

"Yeah, it's scary," Vaughan replied.

SUNNY SPIRITS: Graduates and their families seemed to take Sunday's rain in stride.

"It rained on my brother's graduation last year," said Kate Robinson, a Garner resident who got her child development degree Sunday. "We're pros at this."

-- Sue Stock

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