| ladies and gentlemen of the class of '97: wear sunscreen. if i could offer u only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. the long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. i will dispense this advice now. enjoy the power and beauty of ur youth. oh, never mind. u will not understand the power and beauty of ur youth until they've faded. but trust me, in 20 years, u'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way u can't grasp now how much possibility lay before u and how fabulous u really looked. u are not as fat as u imagine. don't worry about the future. or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. the real troubles in ur life are apt to be things that never crossed ur worried mind, the kind that blindside u at 4 p.m. on some idle tuesday. do one thing every day that scares u. sing. don't be reckless with other people's hearts. don't put up with people who are reckless with urs. floss. don't waste ur time on jealousy. sometimes u're ahead, sometimes u're behind. the race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself. remember compliments u receive. forget the insults. if u succeed in doing this, tell me how. keep ur old love letters. throw away ur old bank statements. stretch. don't feel guilty if u don't know what u want to do with our life. the most interesting people i know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. some of the most interesting 40-year-olds i know still don't. get plenty of calcium. be kind to ur knees. u'll miss them when they're gone. maybe u'll marry, maybe u won't. maybe u'll have children, maybe u won't . maybe u'll divorce at 40, maybe u'll dance the funky chicken on ur 75th wedding anniversary. whatever u do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. ur choices are half chance. so are everybody else's. enjoy ur body. use it every way u can. don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. it's the greatest instrument u'll ever own. dance, even if u have nowhere to do it but ur livingroom. read the directions, even if u don't follow them. do not read beauty magazines. they will only make u feel ugly. get to know ur parents. u never know when they'll be gone for good. be nice to ur siblings. they're ur best link to ur past and the people most likely to stick with u in the future. understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few u should hold on. work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older u get, the more u need the people who knew u when u were young. live in new york city once, but leave before it makes u hard. live in northern california once, but leave before it makes u soft. travel. accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise. politicians will philander. u, too, will get old. and when u do, u'll fantasize that when u were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders. respect ur elders. don't expect anyone else to support u. maybe u have a trust fund. maybe u'll have a wealthy spouse. but u never know when either one might run out. don't mess too much with ur hair or by the time u're 40 it will look 85. be careful whose advice u buy, but be patient with those who supply it. advice is a form of nostalgia. dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth. but trust me on the sunscreen. |