Tumblr worships John Green, and though I haven't read any of his books yet (I'll get to that soon, I promise!!), that means that by default I worship him as well. Green posted the commencement speech he gave to the graduating class at Butler University on his tumblr, and I've included a few quotes that stood out to me and that I want to keep in mind as a recent college graduate...
"...You are probably going to be a nobody for a while. You are going to make that journey from strength to weakness, and while it won't be an easy trip, it is a heroic one. For in learning how to be a nobody, you will learn how not to be a jerk. And for the rest of your life, if you are able to remember your hero's journey from college grad to underling, you will be less of a jerk. You will tip well. You will empathize. You will be a mentor, and a generous one.
Let me submit to you that this is the actual definition of a good life. You want to be the kind of person who other people-- people who may not even be born yet-- will think about in their own silences years from now at their own commencements.
You will always be stuck inside of your body, with your consciousness, seeing the world through your own eyes, but the gift and challenge of your education is to see others as they see themselves, to grapple with this mean and crazy and beautiful world in all its baffling complexity."
Check out the rest of his speech here.
- christine
(original image source unknown)
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