I stole some quotes, apologies in advance.
It's not quite as amusing as "Advice, Like Youth, Probably Just Wasted on the Young", better known as the "Sunscreen Speech," but I think you'll get my intentions.
Here we go…
So tomorrow is the day, the big day, graduation. I've been looking forward to this for a long time, and, concurrently, wishing it never had to come. It really has snuck up quickly, the first day of Freshman year seems like eons ago, yet it seems like yesterday. I'd always wanted to give tribute to the memories of the last four years, so here is my personal valediction, my own adieu. Forgive me for being so pensive, but this is a moment too important to brush aside as just another day.
The sun is setting on another day of life. Sunsets are beautiful, at least that's what I have always thought. They're worth watching, taking the time to stop for a few minutes to reflect on what you've left behind during the last few hours, thinking about what you'll do next. This sunset is no exception, except that the day is extended into years, the hours months, the minutes the days past. So take some time to consider what you have accomplished the past few years, your successes, failures, and most importantly, experiences. The knowledge of life cannot be taught, cannot be learned academically through books, lectures, or study. It must be achieved through experience. Experience life and you will learn much.
Listen to music, music you like to hear. Music expresses that which words cannot, it is a universal language, a language spoken and understood by the soul. It will amplify your emotions, break the dams of the mind and allow your thoughts to flow, or lift you up when all hope is lost. Listen to my profile song and you'll feel what I am trying my best to say.
Dance. Sing. Scream at the top of your lungs. Express yourself. The life within you is worthless if you cannot establish yourself as an individual with thought and passion. Feel, and unleash your feelings. Don't create your own prison; allow your emotions to mingle with those of others. Relationships are established and maintained through feeling. If you can submerge yourself fully in the emotion of life, you will have good friends and a meaningful experience.
Take chances. Not unnecessary risks, risks that have no true benefit, but chances that may contribute to your life. Being overcautious will restrain your ability to live life to the fullest. I should know, I used to be that way, but am no longer. If you see a once-in-a-lifetime chance, grasp it and pull it close. I don't care what you believe in, no one knows where we go after this life, so it is important to confront those chances with welcoming arms. I believe in the Nike slogan. Just do it. Buy a Harley. Jump out of a plane. Ask her/him out. Just do it. It sounds cynical, but you just might die tomorrow, and your résumé wont help you in "the next life." So why the hell not?
Remember your past. For some, this is easier than others. For some, the past is filled with happiness and love, for some it is filled only with pain. Either way, you simply cannot have a future without a past. What you have learned, what you have lived through will always be a part of you, even if unconsciously. Remember where you lived, what you liked to do, your family, your friends. They shaped you, you are a part of them and them a part of you. Forgetting them and their contributions to your life will open a void and you will become empty, lacking a past, and, consequently, a meaningful future. Never regret doing, saying, or otherwise experiencing anything, because at the time, it was exactly what you wanted.
Smile. Enjoy life. Nobody is sure of how life came about, but as far as I'm concerned, it was intended that we have a good time with it. Absorb every sensation and appreciate it. Look at the bright side of things, be an optimist. As Andy Rooney said once, "Happiness depends more on how life strikes you than on what happens." Be happy, and smile— "Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing." You will be a more beautiful person with it.
Love. Allow others to love you. Life is valueless if you cannot unite with others, be it emotionally, mentally, physically. It is a collective experience whether you damn like it or not. In the words of John Lennon, "A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality." Live and let live, love and let love.
The sun has broken the horizon. Tomorrow is a new day for all of us, a day of years—I hope it will be a day filled with the magnificence of life for all of you. The world will not change, the stars will still glow, the waves will break in their endless rhythm, the NYSE will open at 10:00AM Eastern. But we will be different, permanently. So now, we say goodbye, until fate decides to bring us together again. I will miss seeing you all around, even if I disliked you. I will remember you; remember me. You were part of my experience, I a part of yours. But it's time to move on. Keep your eyes open, and your head up, with your past memories tucked safely into your back pocket. Take my advice, or leave it. I don't care. But remember my words, just in case.
I'll see you all tomorrow at Graduation Commencement. Goodnight and good luck.
-Kevin L. Krakauer
"Closing time, every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."
- Dan Wilson, Semisonic
©2008 Kevin L. Krakauer
Current Mood: Sad
Listening To: "Graduation" by Vitamin C
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