Dear Ann,
On Friday I was in Boston to watch my godson pick up a degree from MIT. (Hashtag #godmotherbrag.) It takes a good while for them to read out 2800 or so names, so I made great strides on (but by no means finished) my Tokyo Shawl.
The commencement address was given by Matt Damon, and it was jolly good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9nU5oKtFyo
It was so pleasant, sitting way back, under the trees, thinking about physics and knitting away on my shawl. I realized that other speeches from this year’s graduation season would make good knittertainment, too. So here’s a smattering of speechifying, in no particular order.
Hank Azaria (Tufts)
President Obama (Howard)
Lin-Manuel Miranda (Penn)
And if you’re still going strong, here are 15 more. And here’s NPR’s nifty searchable collection of 354 commencement speeches.
I haven’t listened to them all, but today might be the day.
Love,
Kay
Here at Rutgers, we also had the President. It was great … and the local headline the next day was ‘ignorance is not a virtue.’ It got a bit lost in The Gray Lady.
Here’s the link: http://livestream.com/rutgersitv/commencement2016/videos/123031957
I am so greatful Eldest child got his M.S. so I could go!
Thank you for this inspirational wake up call this Sunday morning!
Thanks for this link. You’re never to old to enjoy graduation speeches! I’d add Michelle Obama at City College to the list.
Congrats on the godson’s graduation!
And check out the vest Rufus Wainwright is sporting on the front page of the style section. Wasn’t his Mom a knitter?
You’re the official newspaper reader of MDK!
Okay – I’m on it!
Thanks for these. Just the inspiration I need for six inches of linen stockinette tedium. I’m happy to see that William Foege’s speech made the HuffPo list. He’s the epidemiologist you never knew you owed a debt of gratitude!
I just have to give a shout-out for Gail Sheehy at the University of Vermont this year. She interviewed and mentioned my daughter – quite a thrill! Her message – Dare to Care! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ISkqQ3oAI0
Wow…Matt Damon…inspiring!
What a lovely, self-effacing brilliant man – this speech really says a lot about Matt Damon – and it is all good. Thanks for posting this! Congratulations and many good wishes to your godson:)! The choice of Matt Damon says a lot for the Class of 2016 – also all good.
When our son graduated from NYU, the commencement *speaker* was Winton Marsalis. He said, “This is how I communicate,” and proceeded to play for us. I videoed it with my phone but tragically deleted it by mistake late.
These speeches are going to help get me through a dreary, rainy Sunday in coastal CT. Thanks so much.
I’m on the shoreline in CT too and the weather is quite dreary, but it’s been great for finishing up some woolier knits before switching to something more summery!
Yes, there have been many Really Good speakers this year! And isn’t it wonderful (she said, waving her cane for emphasis) that we now have the magic of the internets to preserve them for our knitting and mulling pleasure?
John Kenneth Galbraith spoke at my undergrad commencement (and perhaps a thousand others in his career?) and he said at one point: it’s a fact that no one remembers the speech made at their own graduation ceremony.
This is literally the only thing I remember from his speech.
My daughter graduated from Northeastern this year, and we listened to John Kerry, who was surprisingly entertaining and informative. I also got a lot of knitting done, even though they did not actually read the names of all 3000+ graduates.
Another favorite commencement speech of mine is this one, from the University of Texas in 2014:
http://news.utexas.edu/2014/05/16/mcraven-urges-graduates-to-find-courage-to-change-the-world
I wasn’t there to hear it in person, but I think it is pretty terrific.
This makes me nostalgic for my own son’s graduation. Corey Booker was their speaker, and it was a very hot day in the Berkshires. I was overdressed, and the seats were in the open. But I did have a hat, thank goodness!
My dad was there celebrating his 60th reunion. He was one of the old geezers in a red jacket.
The geezers were magnificent, Brenda!
I was lucky enough to attend my brother’s graduation from Harvard a week and a half ago. (Fifty-something who always wanted a degree from Harvard; so, he enrolled in a graduate program.) It was awesome! Stephen Spielberg gave a nice speech.