与我为邻

From the time you were very little, you've had people who have smiled you into smiling, people who have talked you into talking, sung you into singing.

Love you into loving.

No matter where they are, deep down you know they've always wanted what was the best for you.

They've always cared about you beyond measure and have encouraged you to be true to the best within you.

该片的主人公弗雷德·罗杰斯（Fred Rogers）是美国最著名、影响最深远的儿童电视节目《罗杰斯先生的邻居》（Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood）的制作人及主持人。他从1968年开始主持的《罗杰斯先生的邻居》，影响了四十年间一代代的美国儿童。

他曾说过：“生活中真正的问题不是我们拥有多少祝福，而是我们用我们的祝福做了什么。有些人拥有许多祝福并把它们珍藏起来，有些人拥有的很少，却把所有的都给了别人。”

他告诉观众“你是特别的”，其实不是普罗大众意义上的特别，也绝非理所应当的不劳而获，而是说人应该享有被爱的权利以及发展出爱人的能力（这也是决定一个人一生幸福的关键所在）。尽管他有些理想主义的色彩，但他却把这种理想主义付诸于行动，也确实温暖了无数人。

他告诉每一个观众，你就是你自己，独一无二。就像小王子对待他的玫瑰花。

他在每天节目最后会说：

“You've made this day a special day, by just your being you. There's no person in the whole world like you, and I like you, just the way you are.”

From the time you were very little, you’ve had people who have smiled you into smiling, people who have talked you into talking, sung you into singing, loved you into loving. Let’s just take some time to think of those extra special people, some may be right here, some may be far away, some may even be in heaven, no matter where they are, deep down you know, they’ve always wanted what was best for you, they’ve always cared about you beyond measure and have encouraged you to be true to the best within you.”花一分钟去想想生命里那些带给你无尽关怀的人，温暖你、帮助你、只希望你好。感恩他们。

“You know, I think everybody longs to be loved, and longs to know he or she is lovable, and consequently, the greatest thing that we can do is to help somebody know that they’re loved and capable of loving.”

“You have to make each day a special day, by just being yourself, there’s nobody else in the whole world who’s exactly like you, and people can like you as exactly as you are, you are special.”

By Fred Rogers

如果我小时候看过这个节目，我的人生可能会从此不一样。

他是一位牧师，一档常青的美国儿童节目的创始者，一位深深爱着每一位儿童的“邻居”，一个总是温柔、缓慢而坚定地说出很重要的东西的信仰者，在国家人心惶惶之际的一颗安定丸。

许久没有认真地书写，以至一篇影评写得如此艰难，磕磕巴巴的，总觉得哪里不对劲。把脑袋倒空，目光落在窗外错落交织的竹子上，回顾纪录片的主人公罗杰斯先生的一生，回想罗杰斯先生对于我究竟意味着什么。

斯通纳猝不及防地出现了，他那平凡而坚忍的一生，我该怎么形容？始终目光如炬，步步艰难而步步进，我无意彰显所谓的优良品质，我只是看到一个人如何在真正意义上诞生了，诞生之后凭着本能走完漫长的一生了，行走过程也即生命的完成，时时刻刻。那样的一生是简洁的，简洁而不乏力。他是我愿意一遍又一遍去读的故事，每一次的阅读都无比热切地汲取着养育我生命的阳光雨露。我在想，这些曾经带给我深刻触动的生命故事，他们都在共同述说着什么？罗杰斯先生的故事，是否也在无意中回应着我的所求？

罗杰斯先生的生命同样“简洁”。他的一生投注于一件事——儿童电视节目；这一件事贯穿了一个坚实的信仰——爱；他的诠释是缓缓而出的，有着始终如一的平定、坚实，如传道者一样。

这信仰源于基督教，如无意外，罗杰斯理应成为一名牧师，走着属于牧师的传教之路。出于偶然，罗杰斯看到了时下儿童电视节目的无聊、滑稽、虚浮、嘈杂，根本不利于儿童身心健康，他相信一档贴近儿童心灵，以平等尊重的姿态与儿童进行对话的节目，是可以发生魔力的，在娱乐喧嚣的大环境下。于是，一档叫《Mister Rogers' Neighborhood》节目诞生了，节目的开头，罗杰斯先生推门而入，笑脸盈盈地对你唱着：

It is a beautiful day in this neighborhood,

A beautiful day for a neighborhood,

Would you be mine? Could you be mine?

“neighborhood”意味着什么？用项飚的话来说，那是几近消失的“附近”。人掉进了两种极端中，要么聚焦在超越性的宏大叙事，要么只关心自己，久而久之，人将陷入越来越无力而孤单的境遇中，那种具体而微的人和人之间的关系变得比较松散。出路在哪里呢？“个人的意义与尊严出路不在于个人，一定是在于关系”，因此，要在“附近”也即neighborhood构建出爱的关系，罗杰斯早在六十多年前洞察到人的精神困境与出路，这是领悟了基督教关于“爱”的精髓后，对人与关系有的一份理解与关怀。

而在建设关系前，首要的是看见自己、爱自己，这是罗杰斯几十年如一日，不遗余力地总是在告诉你的：你值得被爱，你也有爱的能力。“知道内心深处有某样东西，可以帮助我们成就自己。”

当你的目光温柔地抚摸着身边的每一个人，并试图与之对话，爱就开始流淌。罗杰斯先生，正是在通过电视这一媒介，与电视机前的每一个人，进行深入心灵的对话，跨越时空地构建爱的关系。

这份爱的关系是怎么构建的呢？首先的，关键的，最重要的，是他带着全然的虔诚、尊重、聆听与看见，走向每一个孩子，每一个人，继而让每一个人走向自己。从他和孩子们的互动中，你会明显地感受到他绝对的真诚，你会看到一位卓越的聆听者，在专注的聆听和真诚的只言片语中，试图融化所有外在的坚硬，让人心甘情愿地把自己的柔软、脆弱、本真呈现于外，当这些东西被述说，被看见，人反而赢得了由内而外的、更为强壮的保护伞。

他拒绝以暴力、无厘头、花哨、速度等方式夺取观众的眼球，实在是当时电视节目中的一股清流。在节目里，他几十年如一日地唱着歌开门、从衣柜里拿出一件鲜亮的针织外套，坐在椅子上换一双鞋，以此为标志进入罗杰斯的一天；他从容地做着一天里该做的事，时而慢悠悠地喂鱼、泡脚、散步、聊天，甚至在一分钟里什么也不做，让观众静静地等待；即便呈现出日常的状态，罗杰斯的节目不同于“楚门的世界”那样的真人秀，他会通过手偶、幻想世界等儿童能够接受的方式，告诉他们一些重要的事情，如社会新闻或时下热议的话题；在当时种族歧视的美国，他公然邀请黑人演员作为节目的常驻嘉宾，并和他一起洗脚；他理解并支持同性恋......他的节目在当时有着无可比拟的教育价值，罗杰斯的形象也渐渐深入人心，每当国家发生了让人心动荡不安的事情（如总统遇刺、911事件），他总要被请出来说点什么，以抚慰人心。

他总是无比温柔、缓慢、坚定地道出他视之很重要的东西，有点笨拙，绝对诚意。

当一粒种子的根早已扎进土壤深处，无论它的花与叶朝向何处，都是正确的生的方向。正如罗杰斯选择了儿童电视制作作为毕生的事业，他同样在这条特别的道路上履行着“传道者”的职责，坚信“唯一真正能改变世界的东西，是当有人能明白，爱可以传递”。

我想，他没有刻意坚持什么，不过是把一份信仰贯彻一生。我永远难忘水中的罗杰斯，他不紧不慢地游泳，优雅而坚定，游泳后他站在秤上，指针指向143，他要他的体重每天都维持在143磅。143代表什么呢？——“I”是1个字母，“love”是4个字母，“you”是3个字母。写到这里，我想该停笔了，以沉默的敬意献给罗杰斯，以沉默的感激献给读到此处的你。

原载于 个人公众号： 一只开山怪 （或搜索 herringcat）

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

还记得《小王子》开头那顶帽子吗？

其实是只吞了大象的蛇。

圣埃克苏佩里在《小王子》的扉页送给每个大人一句话——

“每个大人都曾是孩子，但只有很少的人还记得。”

如果有人记得，

Fred Rogers一定是这很少的人之一。

我从事电视业，是因为我讨厌它。

1948年，在大四毕业前，Rogers在回家的假期第一次看见了电视。那时美国电视业仍在发展阶段，还只有三大电视广播网，电视上终日播放的都是现在看来非常初级的综艺节目，比如往嘉宾脸上扔奶油派……Rogers不喜欢这些娱乐节目，他认为“有一种方法可以利用这种神奇的工具来培养那些愿意观看和倾听的人”。尤其是，在当时的电视业中，分级制还尚未被提上日程，缺乏针对儿童成长的节目。

Rogers在PBS主持的最有名，也是播出时间最长的节目叫Mister Rogers' Neighborhood，节目主要是Rogers先生用玩偶对话进行小剧场表演。每个节目开头，穿着针织衫的Rogers先生都会从门外进来，脱去大衣，脱鞋子，然后坐在椅子上，开始讲述新一天的话题。节目的话题很广泛，从家庭兄妹的情感到战争，刺杀，甚至死亡，再到后来80年代，90年代出现的热门议题，诸如种族歧视，同性恋，超级英雄……他帮助孩子们发现小事的价值，从不回避社会争议。他认为每个孩子都有公平的了解世界的权利。

对于种族歧视，他邀请另外一位黑人演员到Mister Rogers的院子里，在一起泡脚；在越战时期，他的布偶King Friday XIII（一位君主）就在自己的堡垒边竖起了铁丝网和墙，用来当做隔离障碍（如今看来，真像一个寓言），让孩子们理解战争的意义。

Rogers有自己独特的话语翻译步骤和儿童交流，从放弃成人式的思考到添加一个简单的动机性想法，例如:“在街上玩是很危险的”最终可以变成“你最喜欢的成年人可以告诉你在哪里玩是安全的。听他们的话真好。”很多学前心理研究都表明，观看过Mister Rogers Neighbor的小朋友，比观看其他儿童节目（比如《芝麻街》）的孩子，更有耐心，专注力，收到并给予更多的正强化（positive reinforcement）。

如果我小时候看过这个节目，我的人生可能会从此不一样

这个纪录片最妙的地方在于，它证明了Rogers先生不仅公平地对待孩子，尊重他们。他的爱和关心，同样对那些已经长大了的成年观众，是更加难能可贵的。因为Rogers先生对人的爱，是无条件的，并给予足够尊重的。

“如果我小时候看过这个节目，我的人生可能会从此不一样。”

很多看完纪录片的观众都在review中后悔自己在小时候因为嫌弃节目节奏缓慢，而没有看下去。等到他们成年了，再通过纪录片回看Rogers先生的节目，了解他的为人，他们说如果早一点看过Mister Rogers，自己的成长期就不会那么痛苦，自己的人生或许会少很多坎坷。

因为他告诉每一个观众，你就是你自己，独一无二。

就像小王子对待他的玫瑰花。

事实上，Rogers最喜欢的名言就来自《小王子》，“And now here is my secret, a very simple secret. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eyes（“L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux."）.”

他敏感而包容，他的眼睛会发现美，也能包容那些不那么美的。他会试着理解，总是能看到那些被忽视的可贵之处。

胖Freddy，我们会抓到你的！

Rogers出生于匹兹堡的上流社会，家庭富裕，从小受基督教熏陶。他在小学时就已经流露出对他人无私的关心。他的同学回忆说，他告诉父母班级里有个小孩的家长无法负担为孩子买新鞋。没过几天，那个孩子就穿着新鞋子来到学校了。在Rogers生日那天，全体同学都会早放学，因为Rogers的妈妈请全班同学去城里看电影。度假结束后开学，Fred也会给老师和同学们带来礼物。Rogers的妈妈Nancy也经常帮助社区里的其他家庭，她和丈夫或多或少每周都会开出几张支票支援贫困家庭。每逢感恩节，Rogers一家会为公司里的员工送去火鸡，并向社区里匮乏食物的家庭送去食物篮。曾经为Fred家族工作的Anna离职后，每年圣诞节仍会收到Rogers家寄来的祝福卡片和支票。

家庭的富裕虽然让Rogers的同学们在日后回忆中对他印象深刻，但在当时，却让Rogers成为了学校的异类。在Great Depression之后的匹兹堡，富裕并不是一种常态。当时发生了许多仇富蓄意报复事件——富人家的孩子被绑架，两个月后，散落的遗骸被发现。一次放学，母亲没有按时来接Rogers，他只能从学校走10个街区独自回家，走到半路，他发现身后聚集了一批小混混，他们追赶他，对他大叫：“胖Freddy，我们会抓到你的！”。

纵然他对人友善，从不炫富，甚至会刻意隐瞒并否认家庭的富裕，但种种不愉快的经历和被孤立让Rogers的青春期变得敏感而脆弱。高中时期（1940s），Rogers拥有了一辆属于自己的车，他会开车上学，但把车停在离学校还有几个街区的地方，因为他不想让同学知道他的与众不同。

即使是成名以后，Rogers也经常被脱口秀和模仿节目恶搞。那些节目里的人模仿他穿毛衣，系鞋带，面露微笑，讽刺他缓慢的语调，毫无男子气概。这种拙劣的模仿非常残忍。但Rogers并不在意，他允许别人模仿他，只要没有敌意。他甚至在《SCTV》里打扮成一个90磅重、胸部凹陷的弱者，和胸部丰满的女性茱莉亚·查尔德(Julia Child)一起站在拳击台上。他参加比赛时，腿上故意粘着泥，袜子又黑又乱。

他对别人的嘲笑毫不在意，只要不涉及到他的原则，他都可以忍受。他愿意分享的都是爱，但从不强加于人。

虽然罗杰斯的价值观和表演是以他的基督教价值观为基础的，但他从未试图把自己的信仰强加给犹太教工或非宗教教工。与他一起师从Margaret McFarland的Hedda Sharapan说， “我父亲在战争结束后在集中营里找到了自己的父亲……所以大屠杀是我家庭中非常重要的一部分。弗雷德·罗杰斯信仰和事奉是以基督教为基础的。然而，我总是觉得他对犹太人的开放让人感觉很舒服……我不知道该如何描述他的这种感觉，大概是一种善良和体贴。”

It's you I like

今天是感恩节。

就像《真爱至上》应该在圣诞节看，《生活多美好》应该在跨年夜看，《东成西就》应该在除夕夜看，《与我为邻》是一部属于感恩节的电影。

很适合Fred Rogers先生。

适合他的这首歌：

It's you I like,

It's not the things you wear,

It's not the way you do your hair

But it's you I like

The way you are right now,

The way down deep inside you

Not the things that hide you,

Not your toys

They're just beside you.

But it's you I like

Every part of you.

Your skin, your eyes, your feelings

Whether old or new.

I hope that you'll remember

Even when you're feeling blue

That it's you I like,

It's you yourself

It's you.

It's you I like.

附录是Rogers先生在1969参议院听证会的讲话记录，也是他在节目之外为大多数人所熟知的时刻。他对参议员说了自己的节目，他在每天节目最后会说：

“You've made this day a special day, by just your being you. There's no person in the whole world like you, and I like you, just the way you are.”

希望你可以继续爱自己。

ღ( ´･ᴗ･` )比心

.附录

时值尼克松为越战增加资金提议削减对儿童电视节目开销的补助，参议院为此召开听证会。Rogers在与会第二天发言，在此之前的发言中，主持会议的参议员一直很严肃，参会的教育家和主持人都没有任何获取资助的进展。Rogers用他6分钟的发言为自己所属的电视台PBS争取了2000万美元的资助。

以下翻译自Fred Rogers Testimony before the Senate Subcommittee. May 1, 1969

参议员帕斯托雷：好的，罗杰斯，该你发言了。

罗杰斯先生：帕斯托雷参议员，这是一份哲学性的声明，大概需要十分钟的时间来阅读，所以我不会这么做。一个孩子在一个健康的家庭里学到的第一件事就是信任，我相信你所说的你会读我们所有人的陈述。这件事对我很重要。我非常关心孩子。

帕斯托雷参议员：如果让你照稿子读，你会不会高兴一点？

罗杰斯先生：我只想谈一谈我的看法。我的第一个儿童项目是15年前的WQED，预算是30美元。现在，在SearsRoebuck基金会和国家教育电视台以及所有附属电视台的帮助下——每个播放节目的电视台都为我们的节目付费。这是教育电视的一种独特的资助方式。有了这个帮助，我们的项目现在的预算是6000美元。这听起来可能有很大的不同，但是6000美元买一段不到两分钟的卡通片。我有时会说这是一种奢侈。据我所知，我非常关心，在这个国家，我们的孩子会得到什么。我在儿童发展领域工作了六年，试图了解儿童的内在需求。我们处理这样的事情——就像童年的内心戏剧一样。我们没必要为了取悦而在屏幕上制造戏剧性。我们节目处理诸如理发之类的事情，或者是对兄弟姐妹的感觉，以及在简单的家庭环境中产生的那种愤怒。我们富有建设性的讨论这些话题。

参议员帕斯托雷：一次节目有多长时间？

罗杰斯先生：每天半小时。大多数频道都会在中午和晚上安排。 WETA在傍晚。

参议员Pastore：我们可以得到一份这样的剧本，以便我们可以看到它吗？也许不是今天，但我想看看这个节目。

罗杰斯先生：我非常希望你能看到它。

参议员帕斯托雷：我想看看这个节目本身，或者其中任何一个。

罗杰斯先生：我们为东部教育网络EEN制作了一百个节目，然后当资金用尽时，波士顿，匹兹堡和芝加哥的人们都争相说我们必须有更多的友邻式的关心。这就是我所给予的。我每天都对每一个孩子表达关心，帮助他意识到他是独一无二的。我结束这个节目时说：“You've made this day a special day, by just your being you. There's no person in the whole world like you, and I like you, just the way you are.”而且我觉得如果我们在公共电视中能说明感情是可以被提及和可控制的，我们就会为心理健康做出很好的贡献。我认为两个男人可以显露他们的愤怒情绪比用枪火表达愤怒更具戏剧性。我一直关注孩子们所看到的东西，15年来我曾在美国和加拿大尝试过，表达我认为有意义的关心的表达方式。

参议员帕斯托雷：你是主持人吗？

罗杰斯先生：我是主持人，是的。我做所有的木偶，我写了所有的音乐，我写了所有的脚本。

参议员帕斯托雷：嗯，我应该表现的像一个非常强硬的人，但这是我过去两天第一次出现鸡皮疙瘩。

罗杰斯先生：嗯，我很感激，不仅是因为你的鸡皮疙瘩，还有你的兴趣 - 我们的沟通方式。我可以告诉你其中一首歌的歌词吗，我觉得这很重要？

参议员帕斯托雷：可以。

罗杰斯先生：这与我觉得孩子们需要知道的良好控制感有关。它开始说：“你对你所感受到的疯狂做了什么？”第一句歌词来自一个孩子。我和孩子一起做木偶 - 与小团体进行非常个人的交流：

What do you do with the mad that you feel? When you feel so mad you could bite. When the whole wide world seems oh so wrong, and nothing you do seems very right. What do you do? Do you punch a bag? Do you pound some clay or some dough? Do you round up friends for a game of tag or see how fast you go? It's great to be able to stop when you've planned a thing that's wrong. And be able to do something else instead, and think this song --

'I can stop when I want to. Can stop when I wish. Can stop, stop, stop anytime....And what a good feeling to feel like this! And know that the feeling is really mine. Know that there's something deep inside that helps us become what we can. For a girl can be someday a lady, and a boy can be someday a man.'

参议员帕斯托雷：我认为这很精彩。我觉得这太好了。看起来，你刚刚赢得了2000万美元。

原载于个人公众号：一只开山怪（Herringcat）

Fred Rogers 真的好棒！这才是我们需要的儿童教育啊！

让孩子有自信，能接受错误，有爱自己和爱他人的能力。

It's you I like

It's not the things you wear

It's not the way you do your hair

But it's you I like

The way you are right now

The way deep down inside you

Not the things that hide you

Not your fancy chair

That's just beside you

But it's you I like

Every part of you

Your skin, your eyes, your feelings

Whether old or new

I hope that you'll remember

Even when you are feeling blue

That it's you I like

It's you yourself

It's you

I like

From the time you were very little

You have people who have smiled you into smiling

People who have talked to you into talking

Sang you into singing

Loved you into loving

Now think about somebody who's helped you along the way

For one minute, I'm going to time you.

Let's just take some time to think of those extra special people.

Some of them may be right here.

Some may be far away.

Some may even be in heaven.

Now matter where they are,

deep down you know they've always wanted what was best for you.

They've always cared about you beyond measure,

and have encouraged you to be true,

to the best within you.

When I was at Dartmouth in the late 1940s, the tuition, room, and board all added up to $1,100 a year. Nobody owned a home computer, and hardly anyone had a television set. And those who did, there was a choice of three channels. I’m not sure if Jeanne Shaheen was even born yet, but very few people would have guessed that within 50 years, a woman would be governor or New Hampshire. Yes. When I was here, the first word of the alma mater was “Men. Men of Dartmouth give a rouse.”Well, now the first word is "Dear." Some things change for the better.

During my first year here, I lived right over there at 101 Middle Mass. And I had two roommates. I had a professor, over there, who did his best to scare everyone in his class, and he gave me the lowest grade that I ever had in any school anywhere. But I also had an astronomy professor, George Dimitrov, who looked for and found what was best in each of his students. When I look at the night sky, I still think of that extra special, kind man.

Dartmouth is many things to each of us, and I'm grateful to Jim and Susan Wright for all that they have done for this school. And I’m grateful to my old friend, Chick Koop, for all that he has done for all of us. And I congratulate every one of you who is being honored in any way during this Commencement weekend.

Our world hangs like a magnificent jewel in the vastness of space. Every one of us is a part of that jewel. A facet of that jewel. And in the perspective of infinity, our differences are infinitesimal. We are intimately related. May we never even pretend that we are not.

Have you heard my favorite story that came from the Seattle Special Olympics? Well, for the 100-yard dash, there were nine contestants, all of them so-called physically or mentally disabled. All nine of them assembled at the starting line, and at the sound of the gun, they took off. But not long afterward, one little boy stumbled and fell, and hurt his knee and began to cry. The other eight children heard him crying. They slowed down, turned around, and ran back to him. Every one of them ran back to him. One little girl with Down Syndrome bent down and kissed the boy, and said, “This'll make it better.”The little boy got up, and he and the rest of the runners linked their arms together, and joyfully walked to the finish line. They all finished the race at the same time. And when they did, everyone in that stadium stood up, and clapped, and whistled, and cheered for a long, long time. People who were there are still telling this story with great delight. And you know why. Because deep down, we know that what matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What really matters is helping others win, too. Even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then.

Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius—what a name—was the last of the great Roman philosophers, and the first of the scholastics of the Middle Ages. Fifteen hundred years ago, Boethius wrote this sentence, “O happy race of mortals, if your hearts are ruled as is the universe, by Love.”

I was once invited to sit in on a master class of six young cellists from the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra. The master teacher was Yo-Yo Ma. Now, Yo-Yo is the most other-oriented genius I’ve every known. His music comes from a very deep place within his being. And during that master class, Yo-Yo gently led those young cellists into understandings about their instruments, their music, and their selves, which some of them told me later, they’d carry with them forever.

I can still see the face of one young man who had just finished playing a movement of Brahms’Cello Sonata, when Yo-Yo said, “Nobody else can make the sound you make.”Of course, he meant that as a compliment to the young man. Nevertheless, he meant that also for everyone in the class. Nobody else can make the sound you make. Nobody else can choose to make that particular sound in that particular way.

I’m very much interested in choices, and what it is, and who it is, that enable us human beings to make the choices we make all through our lives. What choices lead to ethnic cleansing? What choices lead to healing? What choices lead to the destruction of the environment, the erosion of the Sabbath, suicide bombings, or teenagers shooting teachers. What choices encourage heroism in the midst of chaos?

I have a lot of framed things in my office, which people have given to me through the years. And on my walls are Greek, and Hebrew, and Russian, and Chinese. And beside my chair, is a French sentence from Saint-Exupery’sLittle Prince. It reads, “L’essential est invisible pour les yeux.”What is essential is invisible to the eye. Well, what is essential about you? And who are those who have helped you become the person you are? Anyone who has ever graduated from a college, anyone who has ever been able to sustain a good work, has had at least one person, and often many, who have believed in him or her. We just don’t get to be competent human beings without a lot of different investments from others.

I’d like to give you all an invisible gift. A gift of a silent minute to think about those who have helped you become who you are today. Some of them may be here right now. Some may be far away. Some, like my astronomy professor, may even be in Heaven. But wherever they are, if they’ve loved you, and encouraged you, and wanted what was best in life for you, they’re right inside your self. And I feel that you deserve quiet time, on this special occasion, to devote some thought to them. So, let’s just take a minute, in honor of those that have cared about us all along the way. One silent minute.

Whomever you’ve been thinking about, imagine how grateful they must be, that during your silent times, you remember how important they are to you. It’s not the honors and the prizes, and the fancy outsides of life which ultimately nourish our souls. It’s the knowing that we can be trusted. That we never have to fear the truth. That the bedrock of our lives, from which we make our choices, is very good stuff.

There’s a neighborhood song that is meant for the child in each of us, and I’dlike to give you the words of that song right now. “It’s you I like, it’s not the things you wear. It’s not the way you do your hair, but it’s you I like. The way you are right now, the way down deep inside you. Not the things that hide you. Not your caps and gowns, they’re just beside you. But it’s you I like. Every part of you. Your skin, your eyes, your feelings. Whether old or new, I hope that you remember, even when you're feeling blue, that it’s you I like. It’s you, yourself, it’s you. It’s you I like.”

And what that ultimately means, of course, is that you don't ever have to do anything sensational for people to love you. When I say it’s you I like, I’m talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see, or hear, or touch. That deep part of you, that allows you to stand for those things, without which humankind cannot survive. Love that conquers hate. Peace that rises triumphant over war. And justice that proves more powerful than greed.

So, in all that you do in all of your life, I wish you the strength and the grace to make those choices which will allow you and your neighbor to become the best of whoever you are. Congratulations to you all.