2009 Valedictorian: Suzanne Guese
Valedictory Address
Before I begin to hopefully not bore anyone, I would like to thank all parents, family, friends, faculty and staff for advancing the class of 2009 to this point. We all can thank them for allowing us to reach this pivotal stage where we are so fortunate to wear very attractive, black, potato-sack-like polyester gowns. I would also like to thank “the academy” of Frances Sweeney, Jim Sciuto, and the Senior Senate for giving me one of the biggest shocks and honors of being your valedictorian. I was told a few times this was just a big joke, so feel free to bring out the “real” valedictorian at anytime. At any rate here goes…
The Italian saying for “Good Luck” is “In bocca al lupo”. The literal translation of this phrase is “into the mouth of the wolf”. The words “good luck” are heavily overused at events like today. I don’t doubt that many of us have been hearing good luck to you, good luck with everything, good luck with your interview, grad school, good luck your new job, good luck even finding a job, good luck. Already implying defeat, there has to be a reason why the Italians translate this phrase as walking into the mouth of a ferocious animal. The irony of such a phrase is that not a single person in front of me today needs to hear “good luck”.
I can’t impart a higher wisdom than anyone sitting before me. I can’t reminisce about the great times had at Saint Mary’s for everyone or even the bad aspects to college. Everyone’s experience here is completely different. No one enjoyed their freshman year to the same extent. Some of us transferred in as sophomores and juniors. Many sat in the stands as Gaels, while others were the ones we were watching. Some weren’t even watching at all. Others studied abroad in countries all around the world, while the majority remained in the Moraga hills. All of us studied different areas with completely different states of mind. So what could I possibly say for even 5 minutes that will tie our class together? I could over use the word “community” but I will spare you and tell a different story of connection.
I traveled to Italy the summer after my freshman year on Saint Mary’s study abroad program to Sorrento. One day, we had the opportunity to learn how gelato, Italian for Ice cream, was made by one of the most acclaimed gelato makers in southern Italy. The owner of the gelateria imparted on to our small group of Saint Mary’s Italian students a wisdom that I can only shamelessly pawn off as my own. I hope by publicly citing my real source the Honor Council can’t get me for plagiarism on graduation day. Gelato making proved to be much harder than just picking up a spoon to taste test the final product. Great preparation went into selecting the perfect and best ingredients. A time consuming process, with a constant monitoring of machines and temperatures, never crossed my mind as going into making such a simple dessert.
As we gathered in the basement of his restaurant watching him turn Sorrento lemons into the perfect gelato, someone asked him if he ever got tired of his job. He quickly, loudly, and adamantly remarked complete with the Italian over usage of hand gestures, “If you do what you love, you never get tired.” Coming from seemingly the happiest man on earth as his dream job consisted of making gelato, these are the words I will gladly lick up. As simple as it may sound, whatever persona you have cultivated at Saint Mary’s, you have selected a major, sport, interest, place, friends, or whatever it may be, that engaged you to want to spend time exploring. Take that interest and run. Like my Italian friend, you will never get tired. If you pursue things you settle for, you will get tired. If you surround yourself with people that weigh you down, you will grow tired.
It is no secret that Saint Mary’s is a liberal arts Lasallian school. If you are just figuring that out by now, I’m not sure you should be receiving a diploma. We learn a little bit of everything outside our majors. But why? According to John Henry Newman, we are supposed to do it just for the sake of doing it. To have a well-rounded mind is better than a closed mind. I think though, we do it at Saint Mary’s a little differently. I hope we do it not just for the exercising of the mind but also to find things we love, to find subjects, authors, professors, other students in classes not in our major, friends outside of class, to find something we can hold onto to avoid falling asleep.
The Lasallian principal of Saint Mary’s, whether we notice or not, gives us the second half of this equation. It gives us the remarkable ability to not allow anything or anyone to say we can’t do something we love. It gives us the idea of not only serving others but also serving ourselves for the benefit of those with whom we surround ourselves.
So whichever class you feel asleep in, you probably didn’t love it enough. That or you had a late night. The things you didn’t fall asleep doing, that you love to do, those are what will carry you farther in life. You will not have to invest in anti-aging creams and hair dye. It will be the things you love like the gelato man’s example that will never cease to keep you wide-eyed. Of my perhaps overly simplistic words today, here are the only two things I would prefer you to remember. One: If you haven’t experienced gelato yet, go do it. It will change your life. And two: No good luck from me Class of 2009. You don’t need it, so long as you pursue what you love.
