St. Norbert college, 2018

I had the honor of being selected as the Student Commencement Speaker, representing my graduating class of 2018.

The transcript of the speech is written below.

Thank you for letting me talk to you tonight; it’s an honor to speak as a representative of the St. Norbert College graduating class of 2018. Tomatoes can be found at the end of the aisles. But let me just say, this room is a lot bigger up here than it is down there. The only good part is that I can’t see any of my professors behind me taking down any last-minute grade changes based on my speech, like Dr. Neuliep told me he would.  

And speaking of grades, I do have one final test question for our lovely seniors. Please, contain your enthusiasm and your tomatoes. The question is this: Why are we here? I don’t mean that as an existential crisis. This time, literally, why are we here at the Mulva Fitness Center on St. Norbert College during this beautiful sunny day in the two thousandth and eighteenth year of our lord — on Mother’s Day, of all days! — waiting for this tiny Asian dude to finish his speech, or at the very least, this unholy and self-indulgent sentence? 

The answer is you. But you don’t need me to tell you that — I mean, it was your name on the top of every research paper and lab report. Hopefully. So I don’t want to get too philosophical, but it’s like Galadriel told Frodo Baggins: “Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.” And if any of my family or friends thought that they could escape my speech without a Lord of the Rings reference, then they were sorely mistaken. But that line about small people making a big difference says a lot about people like me. You know, English majors. 

Why are we here? The answer is sitting behind you. [Gestures to the audience, the family members] The family members who could try to blackmail you with embarrassing photos, like the one my family has of me in a Snow White dress. I mean, I think I look beautiful. The friends who don’t care if you’re singing off-key on a long road trip because they’re singing even louder than you are.  

Why are we here? The answer is sitting behind me. [Gesture to the professors] Professors who hold office hours that aren’t listed on their syllabi. People with their own families who, for the short time we are on campus—adopt us as their own children. Or pets, if you think that’s a more appropriate analogy. But that doesn’t mean anyone here would dare try to replace Mr. Bingley, Dr. Risden’s adorable cat.  

Why are we here? Because it’s a ceremony. A celebration. When we participate in this ceremony, we are making a promise to everyone here — and more importantly, ourselves — that when we depart from this place, we will treat all life as Norbertines would. And being Norbertine doesn’t mean you have to be a priest—it means you assume social responsibility.

I hope I didn’t scare anyone off right there. Social responsibility. Oof — I think I just scared myself. I think those words are a little frightening because we often think of it as large problems. I mean, in the past four years, we’ve seen two presidents get impeached: Brazil and South Korea — both coming during or right before the countries hosted the Olympic games. We’ve seen the European Refugee Crisis reach levels unseen since World War II. And we’ve reached a point in our country where school shootings like in Roseburg, OR and Parkland, FL are no longer shocking news.  

But one thing I’ve learned during my time at St. Norbert: social responsibility starts with taking care of yourself. Because speaking as someone who has battled depression but doesn’t like to talk about it, I know that when you don’t believe in yourself, it’s impossible to believe in other people. Probably the best thing that SNC did for me was to wake me up to the fact that I am not alone. Among the graduating class today are more than science majors, Greek life members, athletes, future educators and leaders — we are survivors of abusive backgrounds, broken homes, and eating disorders; people who struggle with physical and mental illness, addictions, relationship stress; who face discrimination because of our race, gender, and sexuality — evidence that social justice movements like Me Too and Black Lives Matter hold relevance for us right here on St. Norbert campus.  

Life will give you more reasons than not to give up. But we are here today, class of 2018, to celebrate that we achieved more than we thought we could. Being a socially responsible person means recognizing that all of us who walk up on this stage tonight has the capability to make the world a better place, simply by making ourselves better people. Wherever you end up after this moment, my dearest wish is that you spread the same joy you received here at St. Norbert College. Fight injustice in whatever form it takes shape. Share a piece of your story, and even if it doesn’t change the world, that it will reach the ears of someone who needed it more than you could ever know. Be creative in love, because if you do that, it will never grow old. 

And I hope you don’t mind if I end on a quick prayer: 

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to change the things I can,

And wisdom to know the difference.

It’s been an honor and a privilege, St. Norbert College. 

Thank you.