Sunday, May 15th, 2011...10:13 pm

A Message To Graduating Students

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Dear graduating students,

As you are very, very soon about to receive your diplomas, I want to share with you a majestic quotation from one of America’s most eloquent statesmen, the late governor and presidential candidate, Adlai Stevenson, speaking at a university commencement ceremony:

“Your days are short here; this is the last of your springs. And now in the serenity and quiet of this lovely place, touch the depths of truth, feel the hem of heaven. You will graduate with old, good friends. And don’t forget when you leave why  you came.”

Thank you for coming to the Monterey Institute and for enriching the lives of your fellow students and those of us who work here. I like to think that we have all been instruments of each other’s learning. You are the kinds of persons who will make a difference in the world. The world will not become radically different because of you. But it won’t be quite the same either.

The late William Sloane Coffin, who had been Chaplain at Yale University, once said, “The calling of every human being is to live worth the re-telling of it” You, dear graduates, will live lives “worth the re-telling of it.” You will makee a difference! I am sure of that! May your future endeavors be richly blessed. Come back and visit us often. We will leave a lighted candle in the window for you.

God bless you and good luck!

Peter

Professor Peter Grothe, Ph.D.
Director of International Student Programs Emeritus
MONTEREY INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
email: pgrothe@miis.edu



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