Commencement Speech

Hi! I hope everyone is having a good weekend.

I had the opportunity to audition for a commencement speech last week. I have always envisioned myself speaking at graduation, and I was very excited about it. I spent weeks preparing for the audition. I wrote many different drafts of the speech and spent hours in front of the mirror practicing. I thought I had a really good chance. I kept telling myself that I wouldn't get picked because I didn't want to be disappointed when I wasn't chosen. But, deep down inside, I wholeheartedly thought it was me.

In the end, I was not chosen. I'll admit, I was very disappointed. They picked two of my best friends. I am sure they will do a wonderful job! I can't wait to hear what they have to say in a few weeks.

Anyway, I figured that even if I could not give my speech, I could still share with people what I wrote.

Here's what I had to say:

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Some call it physics. Some call it Karma. I call it life. But, in life, we defy the laws of physics. We know that when you bounce a ball, the ball hits the ground with the same amount of force as the ground hits the ball. However, in life, our actions often have greater impact than expected. One person changes someone else’s life, who in turn helps someone else, who then brightens someone else’s day. Our actions may never be directly reciprocated or even acknowledged. Still, our actions create reactions throughout the world. They create a ripple effect.

The places in which we live, the people with whom we grown up, and the experiences we have all help shape the actions we make. Lauren Eberwein shared with us that because of her mother’s words, her reaction is to pursue music. Greta Stacy told us that because of her time in Oaxaca, Mexico, her reaction was to stop wearing a watch and live life without a time schedule. When the Varsity boys’ soccer team made it to state, our reaction was to have a stadium whiteout. But, the actions of Lauren’s mom or Greta’s host family or the soccer boys’ victory don’t end there. Lauren is going to go on to touch thousands of people with her music, some of whom will be inspired to pursue it as well. Greta will go on to help more developing communities thrive. Because of the dedication of the of the varsity soccer team, many of us will go on to tell our kids and grandkids about the time that the high little school of 250 got bus loads of fans to caravan to state in all white.

Some of us have spent thirteen years here. For some it’s been eight, others six, four, three or one. For me, it’s been seven and three quarters. But, regardless of how long it’s been, anyone can tell that this school is a community and the actions of one person impact the entire unit. Just a few months ago, I had a meeting with a group of lower schoolers who thought that they were on the yearbook staff. For weeks they had been interviewing their friends and doing surveys of their classmates because that is what they witnessed the yearbook staff doing on a daily basis. They want to be like us. We are their role models. They mimic our actions. But, what else were they watching? They were watching when we said “hi” to them in the hallway. They were watching when we treated each other with respect. They were watching as we became leaders at this school, and some of them were inspired to do the same as well. In that sense, our actions impact the entire community, even the students at the other end of the building.

While the younger students were watching us, who were we watching? The media? Our parents? Our peers? Many of us were watching the MPA faculty. Our teachers played a large role in the actions we’ve taken and choices we made. They inspired us to work our hardest and challenged us. The things they taught us, and the experiences that they gave us will stay with us for life. I will be forever changed because Mr. Habermann gave us the opportunity to sing with Cantus choir. I will always know what it means to be free because Ms. Conway brought the constitution to life. I now know what it means to be a hero because in 5th grade and Mr. Dallmann helped us travel to Ancient Greece through our imaginations and live the Odyssey. I now know what it means to be a design-savvy leader with an eye for photography because Ms. Wentzel taught me the ropes yearbook. We’ve learned to think independently, communicate effectively and act with respect and integrity in a diverse community that models intellectual ambition, global responsibility and the joy of learning. Faculty, your actions have created a reaction that defies the laws of physics. The class of 2011 will go to five different countries and 60 different schools and share what we learned in our time here. Your actions are more far reaching than just this school. Your actions will be received all over the world.

Class of 2011, the same principle applies to us. Our actions will have reactions that ripple in a way we never expected. They already have. We are united as one. When something happens to one person it trickles out to impact the entire grade. We learned this when Carolyn Lasch became determined to design and organize our senior shirts. When Dylan, Erik and David tried to furnish the commons with a couch from Goodwill. When Matt G handed out amazing mix CD’s that quickly became part of the top played list on many of our itunes. When we decorated the windows of the quiet study room seasonally. And, when we held each other up on the high ropes course way back in the fall.

While we are a community, we are also strong individuals who spread our knowledge that we have learned at MPA to the rest of the world. Mounds Park Academy has shaped and molded us into the individuals we are today, and that impacts the decisions we make. Each action doesn’t just have a single reaction—it has many, and it impacts more people than we could ever imagine. Let’s take responsibility of the actions we take because we never know whom they will affect. Let’s share our knowledge and our enthusiasm with the rest of the world. Let’s lend a helping hand to those in need. Let’s offer words of encouragement to our friends, peers and strangers. Let’s change the world. Class of 2011, let’s defy physics.