my graduation speech

At the polite behest of my friend, Pat Kerrigan, I have decided to follow in his footsteps and write a commencement speech that will never be read at a graduation ceremony. Because I wasn’t chosen to speak doesn’t mean I don’t have a few good things to say, right? So, here you go, Pat. The tradition lives on…

I swear I’m not good at good byes. I distinctly remember a few times throughout my life where I had to say good bye to family and friends; the result was sloppy and wet. I had friends and family that came and went; good friends who changed schools. I even used to break up when my dad dropped me off at school in the second grade. Change made me sad. I contemplated this reality: what was familiar to me for a little while, had suddenly changed. Things that I had grown accustomed to were gone.

So, I had to adjust. I had to make new friends and find other ways to build my character and stay occupied. Now, dear graduates, much like shifting away from the familiarity of youth, we will have to adjust and become anew as we leave the familiarity of Viterbo.

Viterbo, to me, is kind of like a funnel. It’s here in La Crosse with that big open mouth on Jackson St waiting for all of us to filter our way in. We slosh around a bit, hang out at school, play ball, and get to know each other quite well – and we spend many nights at the Recovery Room. As we get close to the exit, we cycle – one by one – through that little hole, across this stage, one at a time. And like that, we’re done. We’re alumni. We’re no longer able to get away with shenanigans that were previously easy to write off by saying – It’s okay, I’m a college student (a crutch I will greatly miss). So, as I am writing this, I thought about Nathaniel Hawthorne (naturally). In his book, The CustomHouse, he says, “Human nature will not flourish, any more than a potato, if it be planted and replanted, for too long a series of generations, in the same worn-out soil. My children have had other birthplaces, and, so far as their fortunes may be within my control, shall strike their roots into unaccustomed earth.”

We’re leaving Viterbo today with a diploma in hand and words of encouragement ringing in our ears… and no real idea what to expect in the coming weeks, months, and years. All we know is that we will soon be traveling by way of unaccustomed earth.

As we trek across this uncertainty some of us will wait for prosperity to come to us from off in the distance while others of us will grow it from under our feet. No matter what we aspire to, it is of the utmost importance to have a great deal of resolve and enthusiasm. Mind you, friends, this is not something we can’t buy in stores, or find in a bar, but rather something that we must breed within ourselves. Something we must create each day. And, that won’t always be easy.

There will be times of failure and loneliness, let’s not kid ourselves. But through these times it will be equally, if not more important, for us to learn… continue to grow. We’ll soon realize that it’s easy to profit from our gains – anyone can do that. It’s the losses that will build the character and intelligence we’ll need to navigate our way across this globe. It’s like Washington Irving said, “Great minds have purpose, others have wishes. Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune, but great minds rise above them.

I think most of us know that life, as a whole, is highly unpredictable. We’ll never fully know the outcome – or how to play the hand we’re dealt. But, we can all be bold enough to stick our neck out there and play the game. And if that doesn’t work, change the deck. We know that we’ll be venturing into something new. A new world without 13 billion bricks featuring signs hung around campus displaying pictures of Cari Loomis and reminding us of the virtues that Viterbo values – disappointingly, none of those banners adorn my photo… yet. We’re not going to be surrounded by thousands of students, most of whom are our own age. Nor will we have the luxury of ever-changing and often times pleasant company; we’ll quickly be void of this wonderful laid back college life. We’re going to have adversity, and with that comes an opportunity to grow from it. We’ll enjoy our gains, and learn from our losses. We’ll be gracious and compassionate as we move on to stake our claim in places unknown. And through it all, we’ll do our best to offer the world a fine representation of Viterbo University.

As I leave here today, I want to echo the indelible words of one of my favorite authors – Henry David Thoreau.

“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours… If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.”

Class of 2011… good byes aren’t always easy, but they often times open the door for something great; something new. Fellow graduates, look boldly at your future and embrace that unaccustomed earth.

Congratulations and God bless.