Gorbachev, Trustees, Faculty, Parents, and I should say, Julia Porter, class president, and
certainly my new best friend, Christine Bicknell -- and, of course, the Class of 1990. I am really
thrilled to be here today, and very excited, as I know you all must be, that Mrs. Gorbachev could
join us.
These are exciting times. They're exciting in Washington, and I have really
looked forward to
coming to Wellesley. I thought it was going to be fun. I never dreamt it
would be this much fun.
So, thank you for that.
More than ten years ago, when I was invited here to talk about our experiences
in the People's
Republic of China, I was struck by both the natural beauty of your campus
and the spirit of this
place.
Wellesley, you see, is not just a place but an idea -- an experiment in
excellence in which
diversity is not just tolerated, but is embraced. The essence of this spirit
was captured in a
moving speech about tolerance given last year by a student body president
of one of your sister
colleges. She related the story by Robert Fulghum about a young pastor,
finding himself in
charge of some very energetic children, hits upon a game called "Giants,
Wizards, and Dwarfs."
"You have to decide now," the pastor instructed the children, "which you
are -- a giant, a wizard
or a dwarf?" At that, a small girl tugging at his pants leg, asked, "But
where do the mermaids
stand?" And the pastor tells her there are no mermaids. And she says, "Oh
yes there are. I am a
mermaid."
Now this little girl knew what she was, and she was not about to give up
on either her identity, or
the game. She intended to take her place wherever mermaids fit into the
scheme of things.
Where do the mermaids stand? All of those who are different, those who
do not fit the boxes
and the pigeonholes?" "Answer that question," wrote Fulghum, "And you can
build a school, a
nation, or a whole world." As that very wise young woman said, "Diversity,
like anything worth
having, requires effort. Effort to learn about and respect difference,
to be compassionate with
one another, to cherish our own identity, and to accept unconditionally
the same in others.
You should all be very proud that this is the Wellesley spirit. Now I know
your first choice today
was Alice Walker -- guess how I know! -- known for The Color Purple. Instead
you got me --
known for the color of my hair! Alice Walker's book has a special resonance
here. At Wellesley,
each class is known by a special color. For four years the Class of '90
has worn the color purple.
Today you meet on Severance Green to say goodbye to all of that, to begin
a new and very
personal journey, to search for your own true colors.
In the world that awaits you, beyond the shores of Lake Waban, no one can
say what your true
colors will be. But this I do know: You have a first class education from
a first class school. And
so you need not, probably cannot, live a "paint-by-numbers" life. Decisions
are not irrevocable.
Choices do come back. And as you set off from Wellesley, I hope that many
of you will consider
making three very special choices.
The first is to believe in something larger than yourself, to get involved
in some of the big ideas
of our time. I chose literacy because I honestly believe that if more people
could read, write and
comprehend, we would be that much closer to solving so many of the problems
that plague our
nation and our society.
And early on I made another choice which I hope you'll make as well. Whether
you are talking
about education, career, or service, you're talking about life -- and life
really must have joy. It's
supposed to be fun!
One of the reasons I made the most important decision of my life, to marry
George Bush, is
because he made me laugh. It's true, sometimes we've laughed through our
tears. But that
shared laughter has been one of our strongest bonds. Find the joy in life,
because as Ferris
Bueller said on his day off, "Life moves pretty fast; and ya don't stop
and look around once in a
while, ya gonna miss it!"
(I am not going to tell George ya clapped more for Ferris than ya clapped for George.)
The third choice that must not be missed is to cherish your human connections:
your
relationships with family and friends. For several years, you've had impressed
upon you the
importance to your career of dedication and hard work. And, of course,
that's true. But as
important as your obligations as a doctor, a lawyer, a business leader
will be, you are a human
being first. And those human connections --- with spouses, with children,
with friends -- are the
most important investments you will ever make.
At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more
test, winning one more
verdict, or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with
a husband, a child, a
friend or a parent.
We are in a transitional period right now, fascinating and exhilarating
times, learning to adjust to
changes and the choices we, men and women, are facing. As an example, I
remember what a
friend said, on hearing her husband complain to his buddies that he had
to babysit. Quickly
setting him straight, my friend told her husband that when it's your own
kids, it's not called
babysitting.
Now, maybe we should adjust faster; maybe we should adjust slower.
But whatever the era
whatever the times, one thing will never change: fathers and mothers, if
you have children, they
must come first. You must read to your children. And you must hug your
children. And you must
love your children. Your success as a family, our success as a society,
depends not on what
happens in the White House, but on what happens inside your house.
For over fifty years, it was said that the winner of Wellesley's annual
hoop race would be the first
to get married. Now they say, the winner will be the first to become a
C.E.O. Both of those
stereotypes show too little tolerance for those who want to know where
the mermaids stand. So I
want to offer a new legend: the winner of the hoop race will be the first
to realize her dream --
not society's dreams -- her own personal dream.
And who knows? Somewhere out in this audience may even be someone who will
one day
follow in my footsteps, and preside over the White House as the President's
spouse.
I wish him well!
Well, the controversy ends here. But our conversation is only beginning.
And a worthwhile
conversation it has been. So as you leave Wellesley today, take with you
deep thanks for the
courtesy and the honor you have shared with Mrs. Gorbachev and with me.
Thank you. God
bless you. And may your future be worthy of your dreams.
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