This post is an amended version of my Welcome Address at Commencement 2015.
To the Class of 2015 – we are proud of your accomplishments this year, but more importantly, we are proud of you as people. In every aspect of school life, you have been good role models, spirited Pinewood fans, and a group that has set the bar high for other classes to follow.
When I set out to write this year’s welcome message my intent was to dazzle you with brilliant facts and statistics, to stand before you and deliver inspiring quotes from the world’s greatest thinkers and writers.
Instead…and perhaps to the chagrin of some of you, I am going to talk about a life-size sculpture of a goat named Kenny. Kenny is perhaps the most well-traveled member of the class this year. He appeared at numerous sporting events (home and away), was carried into school assemblies, and now is standing guard over the entire school. Beyond the fun of Kenny the Goat, is what he might represent.
You see, a goat is indeed a special creature – tough, resilient, adaptable, smart, they eat anything (much like a few of you). The website GoatWorld.com is a fascinating source of goat facts and figures. Yes, there really is a website GoatWorld.com.
Did you know that there are approximately 450 million goats in the world? No, I do not know who is in charge of counting them. Goats are very sociable, lively, inquisitive and independent animals. They are also quite intelligent and can learn how to open latches on farm gates. Wow! One of you even has a goat at home as a pet.
One fascinating behavior of goats is that the younger goats (kids) prefer to remain nearby their mother, even if separated for years and reintroduced. That might actually happen to some of you after you graduate college.
Goats can climb, run, stand on their hind legs, crawl under fences and some breeds of goats are able to jump heights of over 5 feet. There is actually a company that will rent you a goat to come eat your overgrown weeds and grass. Rent-a-Goat, Inc. provides cost-effective, Eco-friendly, and super cute weed removal. The company is based where else, in California.
People that upset you can “get your goat” and we often look for a “scapegoat” when things go wrong. A commonly repeated story which purports to explain the origin of getting your goat is that goats were placed with racehorses to keep them calm. When ne’er-do-wells who wanted the horse to race badly removed it, that is, they ‘got someone’s goat’, the horse became unsettled and ran badly. That’s just the sort of tale that gets my etymological juices running.
The origin of the term scapegoat is an entirely different matter, one that I will actually use to bore a different group of people at a different time.
So, now the point of my fixation today with goats. The message lies in the magic that can occur when something so simple, so accidental, so utterly ridiculous can tie people together. A goat statue found in a field over the summer becomes a symbol of class (and school) spirit that helps a group to bond in their senior year. And you guys needed to bond. You are a class that has evolved much in your high school years. Old classmates leaving…new classmates coming to Pinewood. We did not know what really to expect from you as leaders and you in fact might not have known what to expect from us. Senior year can change expectations, it can change the rules.
Senior classes do grow in the course of their final year. There are inside jokes and funny (or not so funny) stories. Discovering new lunch getaways with people you might have just sat alongside with in class, but until you found each other out in the parking lot and were able to go off campus together, you were not really friends. Perhaps one of the most oft used lines in a signing speech other than something about Mr. Stone’s age or Mrs. Coyle’s disposition is, “I never knew we could become so close until this year. In fact, I never really liked you and now we are best friends.”
You see, it is often those simple things that bind us. Those small moments – the trivial – the sometimes even mundane that can have great value. I am sure you have all heard the phrase, “take care of the little things and the big things will take care of themselves.” Or “The devil is in the details”. You see…life is a tapestry of little moments and little things that if we work hard and have some luck can manifest into bigger and greater accomplishments. While your goat, Kenny, is just a little thing to some, it helped to bring many of you together. Your shared experiences – those little things, even that goat, have helped to make you closer. Even if you are among those that have had enough of Kenny, he still has found a way to occupy your thoughts.
On a different note, I want to personally thank you for your support of the Back 9 5K and the Dorchester Children’s Center. Your efforts helped to raise $9000! Although it was a little tough getting started, this year’s event was one of the best and helped to remind us about our primary mission at Pinewood – to change lives. Not only will we soon have an extension of the covered walkway between the gyms, you have sent the message that service beyond self is central to the Pinewood experience. Your gift to the Dorchester Children’s Center Building Fund will go a long way.
In fact, your generosity of spirit has inspired us all. Please allow me to share with you the work of another amazing cause needing our help. For the past 70 years, Heifer International’s mission is to work with communities to end world hunger. It’s founder, Dan West, was a Midwestern American farmer who went to the front lines of the Spanish Civil War as an aid worker. His mission was to provide relief, but he soon discovered that a meager single cup of milk rationed to the weary refugees once a day was not enough.
And then he had a thought: What if they had not a cup, but a cow – or even better, a goat.
That “teach a man to fish” philosophy is what drove West to found Heifer International. Now, nearly 70 years later, that philosophy still inspires their work to end hunger and poverty throughout the world once and for all. One shining example of Heifer’s work is the Goats Give Back Project, aiming to provide food security, proper nutrition and self-sufficiency through the donations of real, live goats.
A few short weeks ago, a devastating earthquake hit Nepal killing over 8500 and injuring over 19,000 people. Now is the time to help and thanks to Heifer and the Class of 2015 (little did you know), help is on the way. It is my pleasure to tell you that we have made a gift of three goats to the Goats Give Back Project in honor of your class. You see, that goat means more that you know. It is not only a fun, iconic reminder of your senior year, but let it be a lifelong symbol of a vital lifeline for the poor and the sick. Your new goats will provide critical nutrition in places like Nepal or Zanzibar. You see one of the coolest things that goats can do is to provide food for the hungry.
Commencement is said to be a time of new beginnings. Messages, like my own, encourage you to head out into the world knowing that you are prepared for whatever comes your way. While I applaud that sentiment and a part of me knows it to be true on many levels. The world, our world, is pretty broken. That is the reality you need to embrace and find a way to make this world, our world, a better place. You need to break down walls – build bridges – help find common ground and peace between people. We need you to get started right now, the moment you walk out these doors.
You are heading out into a world of contradictions. Actor Ed Helms who played Andy Bernard on The Office, in his recent graduation speech at UVA reminds us…”that while the world is not a meritocracy, merit still matters. The world isn’t fair, but being fair still matters. The world is unkind, but being kind still matters, perhaps more than anything. We can’t eliminate human nature from humanity, so we must embrace it, accept ourselves—the good, the bad, our brilliance and our ignorance—and simply strive to improve.”
My charge to you, Class of 2015, is to leave this building today not with a satisfied feeling of accomplishment, but with the thirst to make things better. Be hungry – be angry – be excited – be scared – but please, be ready to make a difference. Once again, work to change expectations – to change the rules.
You all have worked hard to get to this point. Some more in academics, others in the arts, and yet others in their chosen sport. Many of you have made service and community leadership a priority. True to the Pinewood experience, most of you in some combination. You, your families, and your teachers have all been major players in your success.
Please remember to thank them all.
This morning will be full of words and wishes and ultimately, we’ll stop talking and finally give out your diplomas. Take it all in and savor each moment. But please, Class of 2015, know that you will always have a place in our hearts. Study hard and visit often. To quote F. Scott Fitzgerald, “I hope you live a life you are proud of.” For Class of 2015, we are all proud of you.
Thank you.
Steve Mandell 