To the Class of 2025

The world is cold and hard and dark enough;
We need not cloud it with our own despair.
And it is furnished, too, with joyous stuff,
And you may find a blessing anywhere
You turn your eyes, if they are opened wide—
The windows of an optimistic mind.
Pay little heed to pessimists who chide;
The things you look for are the things you’ll find!
And when you find a treasure, do not rest—
That which you cherish most, you may yet be.
And of such blessings, surely this is best:
To light a fire by which your brothers see!
So be resolved, once you have seen the light,
To be a candle shining in the night.

It’s hard to say for sure.  It’s been so long.
I’m pretty sure that I’ve been here before.
The paint is peeling and the color’s wrong,
And there were flowers growing by the door.

I’m pretty sure that I’ve been here before.
What matters is that I was there with you,
And there were flowers growing by the door,
And I could do the things you couldn’t do.

What matters is that I was there with you.
It’s hard to be alone when you are old.
And I could do the things you couldn’t do,
And you had stories itching to be told.

It’s hard to be alone when you are old.
The house is big and empty, now as then,
And you had stories itching to be told:
“I’ll tell you something.  I remember when…”

The house is big and empty, now as then.
The paint is peeling and the color’s wrong.
I’ll tell you something—I remember when—
It’s hard to say for sure.  It’s been so long.

They take noisy flight,
Leaving the harvest’s stubble
To hungry field mice.
The crows will not make a sound
When they return for the mice.

Fescue and clover:
A luxuriant carpet
Fit for a king's feet.

For Rob Salminen

I am as old as I have ever been,
And I’ve not seen all that I’d hoped to see–
But every day my life begins again,
And I’m as young as I will ever be.

To the Class of 2018

In times uncertain, ask your truest friends
For counsel, and take all they say to heart—
But know that we are bound for different ends,
And none but you can learn and play your part.
Some friend may say, “To thine own self be true,”
But “thine own self” is not a thing of stone.
And who can say what time will do to you?
Reflect, and you will see how you have grown
And changed, from year to year and day to day,
In ways, perhaps, that only you can see;
We’ve gathered here to send you on your way,
And only you can say what that will be.
Be hungry for whatever lies in store,
And make it greater than what came before.