Today I was tasked with giving the keynote speech at our school’s small school graduation. Thinking about what I wanted to tell a bunch of 18-year-olds was challenging, but here are the words that I shared with them….
Back in May, I received the most wonderful email from Sundeep inviting me to give the commencement speech at this year’s in-school graduation for Equality. With a HUGE grin on my face, I eagerly replied yes. As it was, I assumed you all only knew me as the other short lady in the building who does the certifications, but…. as it turns out, I must have made some type of impression. Needless to say, I was delightfully surprised. And while words, don’t normally escape me, I was at a loss for words on where to begin. When I sat down to write my speech, I thought of the words of wisdom that I wanted to impart to you. BUT MY MIND WENT BLANK. What could I possibly have to tell a bunch of 18 years old that would impact them?!!? Me??? Teach them about the meaning of life (in 6 minutes or less)?!?! The truth of the matter is that at 40 years of age, I still DO NOT HAVE the meaning of life figured out. Truthfully, I’m not sure I fully ever will….but then again, isn’t that the human condition?
Instead, I want to share with you the very simple principle by which I live my life. I always live my life with love, laughter, and happiness. As all of you embark on your post-Met journey, my sincere wish for you all is to live your lives with love, laughter, and happiness.
Living Life with Love
At the age of 28, I became a mom for the first time and one of the smartest men I know, my dad, gave me some of the most important advice I’d ever been given– and that is, no matter what you do it out of love. For years that advice has served me well, as a mom, as a wife, as a teacher, as a friend, and as a human being. As you journey out there into the world that lays ahead approach life with love in your heart. Make your decisions based on love rather than hate or anger. Make no mistake, this is not always easy. As a mom and as a teacher, there are many times I’ve had to make a decision that would make my kids think that I hated them, but that was always contrary to the case. I know that when I have love in my heart, I will never go wrong. As Oscar Wilde once said, “Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.”
Make sure you keep the sun in your garden. Shower those around you with love, but most importantly love yourself. You are all incredible and beautiful human beings and deserve to treat yourself with love. Again, I still totally don’t have this figured out, but each day I try to look in the mirror and name one thing that I love about myself…. Maybe it’s my eyes or my personality or my giving nature, but it doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is that I force myself to find something I love about myself. When I remind myself that I am worthy, I treat myself with love and it spills over into the way I treat others around me. So, love yourself so you can love others.
Living Life with Laughter
At the same time, don’t take yourself too seriously! Learn to laugh at yourself. It has been proven time and time again, laughter is indeed the best medicine. Think of all of those times you sat in advisory where tensions were high, exhibitions were coming due, your advisor was crazed with narratives and someone cracked a joke and the tension in the room just melted. Live your life with laughter…..
Laugh at the good. Laugh at the bad. Laugh at the ridiculous. And don’t forget to laugh at yourself. Afterall, laughter has been scientifically proven to be good for you……
- Laughter relaxes the whole body, boosts the immune system, releases endorphins
- Laughter also protects the heart, decreases pain, and relaxes your muscles
- Laughter is also good for your brain. It improves your mood, eases tension and anxiety, and attracts us to others.
- And my personal favorite….Laughter burns calories. And burning calories makes me happy because I can eat more. And eating more makes me even happier So you see…. Laughter clearly equals happiness.
Living With Happiness
Make no mistake, happiness is a choice. Choose to live your life with happiness and joy. Ther will be days that you will be confronted with situations that leave you feeling challenged. It is in these times that you must choose happiness.
Over the course of my ripe 40 years, I have learned and continue to learn that happiness comes from within. As sentient beings, we spend countless hours searching for the next best thing/external rewards that will make us happy. We tell ourselves, “If I get that job, If I lose that weight, If I marry the person of my dreams, If I get into the college I want, if, if, if……” But all of those external things can change at a moment’s notice. Then what happens? When the “things” that made you “happy: are no longer available, where does that leave you? Empty and unhappy.
Instead, choose happiness. Focus on what serves you. What will serve your soul? Choose happiness, find gratitude, be mindful, practice compassion, and be you. Be happy being you. I know that I am not perfect, but I do know that I am perfectly me. I am authentically me and being me has allowed me to choose happiness, so choose to be the best you.
Some Final thoughts
Always be authentically you. And No, you are not perfect, either. In being you, you will make some mistakes and that’s OK. You are on the potter’s wheel of life. You are like clay on a wheel being molded. As you go through life, you will spin, you will change, and you will form, but in the end, you will come out a beautiful and distinct piece of art.
Honor your experiences as life lessons and learn to enjoy the journey. Lead with love, laughter, and happiness and your soul will forever be nourished.
Your graduation is not the end of something, rather, it is the beginning of an amazing journey. The world out there has so much in store for you. Enjoy ALL that life has to offer, go out there and grab the bull by the horns. Life is for living. Know that as you leave our little world known as “The Met” you leave here a capable and remarkable person. I so proud of you all and all that you’ve accomplished. You’ve left footprints on my heart.
To paraphrase Maya Angelou, “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”
All 4'7" of me 