Claire Gorman Visitation Graduation Speech 2016 Good afternoon, Sister Mary Denise, Sisters of the Visitation, Dr. Nichols, faculty and staff, family, friends, and classmates. We welcome you to the commencement ceremony for the class of 2016. Today I am honored with the opportunity to speak on behalf of the graduating class as we celebrate this turning point in our lives. Approaching today, all of us here have faced countless unknowns. For some, the question of where to attend college remained unanswered until the evening of April 30 th. Others in the graduating class wonder what our roommates will be like, worry about homesickness, and panic over the prospect of having to dress in something other than our uniforms. Our families confront their own uncertainties with the departure of children--for example, I know my family is anxious because they ve already bought a dog to replace me! Finally, Visitation must bid farewell to this class, whose talent and joyful presence in the school will leave a wonderful legacy. The uncertainties that face everyone in this room are numerous and on scales large and small. These unknowns unify us. Embracing these new beginnings will require bravery from all of us. Therefore, I would like to discuss that very topic: bravery. But what is bravery? Naturally, in searching for a definition, I looked for inspiration among my classmates, the bravest women I know. However, they did not
yield a straightforward description of what it is to be brave. Instead, looking for bravery in the class of 2016 revealed that it is a multifaceted concept. For instance, according to the class of 2016, bravery is doing one s best, but accepting and learning from failure when it happens. This definition of bravery can be traced to many among us, but particularly our athletes. They practice until their feet blister and their muscles ache. Often, this hard work results in the joyful pride of winning. But when they lose, they lose gracefully, literally smiling through tears to support their teammates in difficult moments, and ready to practice even harder the next day. The bravery to dedicate oneself wholeheartedly to a team is evident in our athletes, who have the determination to passionately invest themselves in their pursuits through success and failure. Thus, these athletes inspire the first definition of bravery. A second definition arises from the performers in this class, who have proven that bravery is acknowledging and conquering fear. Behind me are singers, dancers, and actresses who have overcome a range of anxieties, from simple nerves to serious stage fright, in order to share their talents with an audience. The tense whispers in the wings before choir concerts, ViSTA productions, or talent shows only attest to these artists bravery in stepping onstage despite their fear. So to the brilliant performers in this class, I commend you for living this second definition of bravery.
A third definition of bravery comes from the class of 2016 s appetite for spirited classroom discussion. As freshmen, we rarely expressed our opinions, worrying that we d trip over our words or incite disagreement. As sophomores, we became more forthcoming with our ideas, having developed more animation about our beliefs and confidence in our abilities to defend them. Then, junior year, our outspokenness reached its peak and became more aggressive than productive. However, we recognized our mistake and, as seniors, we have worked together to overcome our differences and foster more open-minded and mature discussions. I am so proud of our class s growth in this way. My opinionated classmates have proven that it takes bravery to speak one s mind, but it takes just as much bravery to listen generously to someone who disagrees. A final idea I thought about when investigating the bravery in this class was the classic advice to never give up. I wholeheartedly believe that it is brave to pursue a goal with tenacity, and I know there are things you should never give up on. Yourself being the foremost of these. However, classmates, let's look back into our Vis experience for a moment and picture one of those many late nights spent studying. We all watched our bedroom clocks turn through the early hours of the morning as we sifted through notes, study guides, and quizlets. But there usually came a moment when we realized we had made as much progress as we were going to make. So we decided to go to bed. Sometimes that decision felt like an act of surrender, and perhaps it was. But I think
we ve all learned from this universal experience that a final definition of bravery is knowing when to persevere and when to let go. Tenacity and hard work can take us very far, especially when we recognize that our best is enough. My classmates ways of living these definitions of bravery give the word a double meaning. While it's so brave to work hard, conquer fear, speak up, and persevere in the face of difficulty; it also takes bravery to recover and learn from failure, to acknowledge weakness, to listen to others, and to know one s limits. Bravery, I have discovered, is not one extreme or another, but a balance, mirroring the symmetry of gentle strength. For friends and family of the graduates as well as for Visitation at large, these ideas of bravery will apply as you release the class of 2016 to grow beyond high school. Doing so will require a great deal of trust in this class. Kurt Vonnegut is credited with saying We have to continually be jumping off cliffs and developing our wings on the way down. Jumping off of those metaphorical cliffs takes bravery, but allowing someone you love to jump from those cliffs might require even more. Friends, family, and Visitation: we, the class of 2016, will need your support as we leap into the coming challenges, risks, and unknowns. This will require your bravery as much as our own. And finally, classmates, on this day we celebrate our high school careers while looking out over the uncertain landscape of a new beginning. Before we set out on our journeys, I would like to leave you with one final statement: I have the utmost
confidence in you. I cannot imagine a more capable group of young women to take on the joys and difficulties of this beautiful future. We are a resilient class. We are a passionate class. We are strong-willed, hard-working, free thinkers. And above all, I think we are brave. So thank you, Visitation, for guiding us in becoming the brave young women who stand here today. Thank you to our parents and families, who made this experience possible for each one of us. Thank you to the Sisters, for opening your home and your hearts to this class. Thank you to the faculty and staff who challenged us, guided us, and shared your enthusiasm for learning with us. Finally, as we, the class of 2016 rise to take on the next steps in our lives, I commend my classmates for all you ve accomplished and for living out the many meanings of bravery. Thank you.