St. Lawrence University: Commencement

Speech Text - Brooke James '06
May 21, 2006

I extend my warmest welcome to all of you: family, friends, Laurentians and my fellow classmates. I can’t even express how great it feels to have all of us here together… in this dry place.

For some of us, this day comes with great excitement and relief. The last few weeks of college, (before senior week of course) were spent by many of us thoroughly enjoying our last possibilities to spend as many hours typing, reading, researching, living in the library, getting very little sleep, and feeling what stress and ulcers actually are. This experience for me, which I fondly named “Project Graduate”, was tough; but I formed an everlasting friendship with our dear Owen D. Young library, and I have to say, I learned a lot in those last few weeks and towards the end I started to enjoy it. I truly embraced that time and cherished its positive aspects. I thought, how many more chances do we have to sit and listen so closely to the chapel bells ring at 5pm through the walls of ODY just next-door? How many more chances will we have to watch the amazing sun setting over our campus through the grand windows of ODY? And most importantly, I thought, how many opportunities will we have in the future to be so close to so many of our fellow classmates and friends sitting at every table, tree house, and computer in one communal place, our beloved ODY?

My only regret upon this rained in day, is that we couldn’t be graduating outside the walls of ODY.

Today we will receive a piece of paper, and read our names written on the same page as that of St. Lawrence University. For some of us, we are the first in our family to graduate college; for some, we are one of many in the same family to attend St. Lawrence; for others, our diploma is what it is: recognition for accomplishing four year of undergraduate education. But when we open that diploma today, and many days down the road, we will smile, I guarantee it…but what is this smile about?

Is it the great knowledge we now have? Is it because of the 12 or more hours a week we spent in the classroom? Is it that all-nighter we pulled – maybe on several occasions to finish a paper or study for an exam? Is it that book we read? Or that equation we solved?

Or is it something else? Is it perhaps for the experience that we smile? The lives we’ve lived, the chaos we’ve caused and the people we have met and become? What will you remember when you look back on your years at St. Lawrence?

From past experiences, I am pretty sure that the bad will all fade and the good will shine, and as we sit wherever we are next Fall, feeling like we should be going to school as we have for the past 16 years, we will remember the little things that made life here - so big.

Our first year… meeting our roommates and either having instant best friends or counting the days until we were going to lose it and move out. Finding our classes, Dana and the Tick Tock, traveling at all times with at least 8 people by our sides. The time that freedom became reality, yet independence was far from anything real.

The next two years gave us a chance to find ourselves and our niche on campus. We moved in with our chosen friends, joined clubs, sports teams, Greek and theme houses; we climbed one, or more of the 46 high peaks, took trips to Ottawa and Montreal, found necessity in online shopping, bonded at Snowbowl, and learned the magic late night number 386-4581. And with each day we felt more and more connected to this place.

And then came senior year, treating every day like the last. The lists of things to do before graduation swarmed. A new Dean and more student voice, combined with the quickly passing days created new adventures: Grey’s Anatomy, senior blues, a pretty warm winter, and last but certainly not least - fist pumping. We challenged ourselves, our peers and administration. We made our mark; the Class of 2006 is full of incredible people and our years here have been marked with big changes.

Every class may feel this way when they leave, but I stand by my claim; however, there is something every class does share: it is unspoken, yet recognizable by every Laurentian who has experienced life here in the past 150 years. Whether it be braving the long, cold, Canton winters, or creating fun times out of the solitude of the North Country, we manage to learn, love, and live life to its fullest – a beautiful balance of work and play.

We can not boast our great accomplishments without recognizing the people who supported us: friends, teachers, family and more specifically – parents and guardians. For they were the ones sitting at home listening to our calls of tears and complaints after a hard day or week; hanging up the phone with a feeling of hopelessness, so far from us to do anything, worrying about our wellbeing and feeling sorry for days and days about the pain we were experiencing. Meanwhile we, who actually were feeling pretty low, got off the phone, took a deep breath, gave a friend a hug, and went out and had some fun – completely forgetting all our own worries the next minute. For your support, your ear, and in many cases your money – we love you all and appreciate you beyond belief.

Today we leave you St. Lawrence University, and we will not cry because it is over, but we will smile because it happened.

Return to Commencement	Speech Text - Brooke James '06 May 21, 2006 I extend my warmest welcome to all of you: family, friends, Laurentians and my fellow classmates. I can’t even express how great it feels to have all of us here together… in this dry place. For some of us, this day comes with great excitement and relief. The last few weeks of college, (before senior week of course) were spent by many of us thoroughly enjoying our last possibilities to spend as many hours typing, reading, researching, living in the library, getting very little sleep, and feeling what stress and ulcers actually are. This experience for me, which I fondly named “Project Graduate”, was tough; but I formed an everlasting friendship with our dear Owen D. Young library, and I have to say, I learned a lot in those last few weeks and towards the end I started to enjoy it. I truly embraced that time and cherished its positive aspects. I thought, how many more chances do we have to sit and listen so closely to the chapel bells ring at 5pm through the walls of ODY just next-door? How many more chances will we have to watch the amazing sun setting over our campus through the grand windows of ODY? And most importantly, I thought, how many opportunities will we have in the future to be so close to so many of our fellow classmates and friends sitting at every table, tree house, and computer in one communal place, our beloved ODY? My only regret upon this rained in day, is that we couldn’t be graduating outside the walls of ODY. Today we will receive a piece of paper, and read our names written on the same page as that of St. Lawrence University. For some of us, we are the first in our family to graduate college; for some, we are one of many in the same family to attend St. Lawrence; for others, our diploma is what it is: recognition for accomplishing four year of undergraduate education. But when we open that diploma today, and many days down the road, we will smile, I guarantee it…but what is this smile about? Is it the great knowledge we now have? Is it because of the 12 or more hours a week we spent in the classroom? Is it that all-nighter we pulled – maybe on several occasions to finish a paper or study for an exam? Is it that book we read? Or that equation we solved? Or is it something else? Is it perhaps for the experience that we smile? The lives we’ve lived, the chaos we’ve caused and the people we have met and become? What will you remember when you look back on your years at St. Lawrence? From past experiences, I am pretty sure that the bad will all fade and the good will shine, and as we sit wherever we are next Fall, feeling like we should be going to school as we have for the past 16 years, we will remember the little things that made life here - so big. Our first year… meeting our roommates and either having instant best friends or counting the days until we were going to lose it and move out. Finding our classes, Dana and the Tick Tock, traveling at all times with at least 8 people by our sides. The time that freedom became reality, yet independence was far from anything real. The next two years gave us a chance to find ourselves and our niche on campus. We moved in with our chosen friends, joined clubs, sports teams, Greek and theme houses; we climbed one, or more of the 46 high peaks, took trips to Ottawa and Montreal, found necessity in online shopping, bonded at Snowbowl, and learned the magic late night number 386-4581. And with each day we felt more and more connected to this place. And then came senior year, treating every day like the last. The lists of things to do before graduation swarmed. A new Dean and more student voice, combined with the quickly passing days created new adventures: Grey’s Anatomy, senior blues, a pretty warm winter, and last but certainly not least - fist pumping. We challenged ourselves, our peers and administration. We made our mark; the Class of 2006 is full of incredible people and our years here have been marked with big changes. Every class may feel this way when they leave, but I stand by my claim; however, there is something every class does share: it is unspoken, yet recognizable by every Laurentian who has experienced life here in the past 150 years. Whether it be braving the long, cold, Canton winters, or creating fun times out of the solitude of the North Country, we manage to learn, love, and live life to its fullest – a beautiful balance of work and play. We can not boast our great accomplishments without recognizing the people who supported us: friends, teachers, family and more specifically – parents and guardians. For they were the ones sitting at home listening to our calls of tears and complaints after a hard day or week; hanging up the phone with a feeling of hopelessness, so far from us to do anything, worrying about our wellbeing and feeling sorry for days and days about the pain we were experiencing. Meanwhile we, who actually were feeling pretty low, got off the phone, took a deep breath, gave a friend a hug, and went out and had some fun – completely forgetting all our own worries the next minute. For your support, your ear, and in many cases your money – we love you all and appreciate you beyond belief. Today we leave you St. Lawrence University, and we will not cry because it is over, but we will smile because it happened.
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