Fredericktown High School Graduation Speech
May 28, 2004
Friends, Family Members, Faculty, and most of all, Graduates. Thank you for inviting me to be part of this very special day in all of your lives.
It is kind of ironic that, on a day when you are wearing identical caps and gowns, most graduation speakers will tell you that individuality is the key to success.
I actually believe it, but the truth is that each one of you is on a different path, and you have all met here today because you held a common goal and you worked hard to achieve it. From here, you will go on to meet different challenges and I don't need to tell a close-knit class such as yours that it is important for us all to be here together to celebrate.
You've earned it!
Supposedly, the role of a good graduation speaker is to offer some solid advice to the graduates. I put my mind to this objective, and I think I came up with some good counsel.
So here are my Ten Rules for a Graduate:
10. Vote
This is probably not a surprising rule coming from your Representative in Congress. But it is especially important for young Americans to vote - and I don't even care who it is for, as long as your vote is based on principles.
Registering to vote is a privilege and an obligation for citizens in our democracy. The lowest voter participation rates, however, are frequently among the youngest voters. As you begin to build lives and families of your own, your stake in government will only grow.
By voting, you can influence the policies you care about on local, state, and national levels. Health care? Taxes? Education? Even zoning ordinances are affected by the officials you elect.
Just like trigonometry, you'll probably never need to worry about how a zoning ordinance is made. But if you ever do, it will be far too late to start with voting. Good government depends on an involved electorate.
9. Play Games, Learn to Cook Something, and Start Your
Own Traditions
Did you ever stop to wonder why so many of your parents play bridge or play cribbage or pitch horseshoes or bowl?
Studies tell us that playing games delays the onset of memory loss and dementia that can occur later in life. I know you might not think it is working... but I promise you, it is.
Games offer us a way to communicate and compete, and a reason to be social. They have their own histories and cultural roots, and they challenge us. Cooking has the same effect.
For you young men who might not be interested in cooking, because it is "too feminine" an activity for you - if you think searing a two-inch thick steak in a glowing-red, cast iron, 450-degree pan is girly, then you've never done it. It's like cooking on the upturned engine of an F-16. (Subrule 9a - use a fireproof glove when you do this.) So know how to cook something well, even if it is a simple dessert, and that recipe will serve you well. (Ron asking me for recipe.)
The truth is that all of these family recipes and games that you play with your friends become your own traditions. They identify you and serve as a commodity you can share with others, while they share their traditions with you.
8. Pray
In the House of Representatives, we begin each day with a prayer from our chaplain and the Pledge of Allegiance. I don't care who you are - it is a good way to begin any day.
Your personal relationship with a higher power is one of the best avenues to get to
know yourself. It doesn't have to be Jesus, it doesn't have to be God. Just to know there are forces in the universe greater than yourself will keep you humble and give you strength.
7. Good Planning Is Essential
In the former Soviet Union, there was an example of inefficiency that baffled economists all over the free world. In Central Russia there was a steel ball-bearing factory. They took raw steel, melted it down into the round balls, and shipped them out.
There was nothing odd about this, of course, unless you knew that the ball bearings were shipped to a smelting facility 100 kilometers away where they melted down the ball bearings into raw steel and shipped it back to the ball bearing factory, where the process began again.
We all know what happened to the USSR. Good planning is the key to making progress.
6. Never, Ever, Ever Gossip
That's about it right there. Nothing good ever came from talking about someone
behind their back. And more often that not, the person you were gossiping with is
talking about you behind yours. There is no better way to alienate your friends,
damage your reputation, or get pushed out of a job. I know it can be tempting.
Just don't do it.
5. Do Your Own Taxes
Now I know taxes can be complicated things. But not only will doing your taxes
save you some money of your own, it will also remind you every year that good
government isn't a gift. You are paying for it.
Medicare taxes, state income taxes, federal income taxes, social security taxes,
earnings taxes, alternative minimum taxes. Doing your own taxes is the best way I
know of to motivate yourself to understand the system and get involved.
4. Innovate
Nothing is more valuable in America than a new way of doing an old thing. Never
stop thinking of innovations on ideas that already exist.
In the mid 1800's, a thriving trade in ice harvesting existed in the Arctic. The largest shipment ever made was 200 tons of ice shipped to India. By the time it arrived, 100 tons of ice remained unmelted, but it was enough to make a profit.
Instead of thinking about innovation, all that concerned the ice harvesters was what was known about harvesting ice - small improvements such as better saws and better transportation.
Predictably, the ice harvesters were put out of business by mechanical ice makers. They set up shop in a city and made the ice there, eliminating the need to cut it and ship it long distances.
Before long, refrigerator makers figured out that if ice could be made on site in a city, why couldn't it be made in homes?
Each innovator made money along the way - and today it is a lot more convenient for icing your iced tea.
3. Save Before You Spend
Impulses are a big part of our materialistic society, and credit cards get us the things we want without any money actually changing hands. Consumer debt is raging out of control in America, with some people in so much debt that the interest on their credit cards is outpacing their minimum monthly payments.
By saving first and spending later, you avoid the impulse of buying things such as
cd's, the latest fashions, video games, and so on, which don't really make you any
happier. Instead, you will build good credit and form better buying habits.
I know you're not thinking about buying a house now, but you should be thinking about buying one someday.
This brings me to number two:
2. Joy, Not Happiness
Happiness is material and often fleeting. Joy is lasting and unpredictable - and you often find it in unexpected places. For instance, I never intended to run for Congress. I always thought I could do more good working with the system rather than within it. When my husband Bill died, I reluctantly agreed to put my name on the ballot. I was unsure how long my career in politics would last, but I vowed to work hard.
Today, on the other hand, all of that hard work has paid off. I get satisfaction from the work I do, from serving others, and from improving our democracy, little by little. I love my job. It's all I could have hoped for, and I get joy from the smallest victories in my work.
1. Put Your Family First
Of course, the other logical place to look for joy is in your family. When you think about the network of support here with you today, you graduates should feel very good about your family. Despite disagreements and trials, the members of your family are the only people in the world who have to love you and accept you no matter what you do!
Take advantage of that love, and return it by putting your family first. We won't have the luxury of having them around forever, so spend time with your family and make sure they know you love them.
Someday, you may have children of your own, and I will tell you from personal experience that there is no greater joy in life. Pain, yes, but joy also.
For your parents, today is one of the joys.
So, let me recap:
Vote
Play Games, Learn to Cook Something, and Start Your Own Traditions
Pray
Good Planning Is Essential
Never, Ever, Ever Gossip
Do Your Own Taxes
Innovate
Save Before You Spend
Joy, Not Happiness
Put Your Family First
If any one of you takes just one of these suggestions to heart, our time here today has not been wasted.
In closing, I want to thank you - parents and grandparents - for helping to mold these students into successful people. Graduating class of 2004, congratulations to each and every one of you on your accomplishments.
I hope in the years ahead, you will all take the time to contribute back to your community.
Southern Missouri is a great place, a great place to call home, and a great place to grow. Fredericktown is your community, too, and I want you to use your considerable and combined talents to give back to your town and your state and make them better for generations to come.
Good luck to you, young women and men.
God bless you, and God bless America.