[APPLAUSE] Thank you Ryan for that truly kind and generous introduction.
Thank you class of 2023 for this incredible honor,
the greatest that I have ever received.
It's truly humbling to receive a teaching award from you,
my students who have taught me so much and who have so greatly enriched my life.
What a strange and tumultuous three years it has
been with each year quite different from the blast,
but I could not have asked to go through it with a better group of people.
We had the most unconventional of introductions of
first year of law school conducted entirely on Zoom.
You like me may have experienced
trepidation and wondering how we would forge connections,
how we would learn from one another under such unusual circumstances.
In the fall of 2020,
seeing dozens of your faces on
a computer screen in the dreaded gallery view feature of Zoom,
I wondered how we would build the community necessary for fostering a stimulating,
inclusive, and respectful learning environment.
But you rose to the challenge from Day 1.
Despite serious Zoom fatigue,
you found ways to connect with your professors and to
support one another during a very taxing year.
You joined the Harvard Law School community from far corners of the globe,
undeterred by the constraints of our virtual classrooms,
eager to ask questions, to learn,
to share your experiences,
and always with humor and good cheer.
A year later, you appeared in the flesh.
It was a strange reunion of sorts,
meeting virtual friends in real life.
A pandemic induced deja vu that one journalist has aptly termed deja zoom.
As we walk the halls of Harvard Law School,
we squinted our eyes at the site of a familiar looking,
albeit still masked face wondering,
hey, is that really you?
You're taller than I thought.
[LAUGHTER] Despite having been separated by
thousands of miles and countless computer screens that first year,
I think many of us felt like old friends.
I think many of us also felt even more cognizant of the importance of human connection.
A smile or a handshake,
and grateful for its return.
Today, I am overjoyed to have this opportunity to
celebrate in person with you and your loved ones, your sterling accomplishments.
Your graduation brings to memory
my own graduation from Harvard Law School exactly 10 years ago.
When I sat in the space where you are now sitting,
I was so excited to join the ranks of the legal profession,
but I was also daunted by the awesome responsibility that our profession demands.
Serving the public good.
As one of my beloved mentors has repeatedly impressed upon me.
Lawyers have a duty to conform their practice
to the highest ideal of public spiritedness.
Great lawyers seek to serve their clients and the public good.
These commitments are not seen as mutually exclusive.
Tomorrow as new lawyers,
you will join me in this shared commitment
to ensuring that our laws serve the legitimate ends of
a democratic society and to creating and preserving
systems of justice for all who are affected by our loss.
What words can I offer you on the eve of your graduation?
I must admit this is a real challenge in part because I
still consider myself very much a student in law and life.
But in the decades since my formal education has concluded,
I have learned much with trusted teachers and mentors patiently guiding me along the way.
Today, I would like to share two lessons with you on what I
have learned on what I believe we as lawyers and more importantly,
as people in a shared democratic enterprise,
can do to fulfill our commitment to promoting the public good.
First, as my mentors and teachers urged me,
I implore you to find your North Star.
Figure out what you stand for and what you will
stand up for no matter how great the cost.
This North Star will help you live a life with purpose.
It will help you reorient yourself anytime you
find yourself lost or facing deep uncertainty.
My North Star reflects my family's experience of immigrating to this country.
My parents and I came to the United States over 30 years ago.
Despite having no support network in this country,
and despite facing a men's language and cultural barriers,
my parents gave me the greatest gift,
the opportunity to grow up in a country premised
on the ideal of opportunity and justice for all.
I would not be here with you today,
but for my parents, love,
courage, and sacrifice.
This experience which may resonate with some of you has fueled
my deep commitment to ensuring equality of opportunity for every person in this country,
regardless of how they look,
where they are from,
what they believe, and who they love.
My pursuits in the legal profession as practitioners,
scholar, and most of all teacher are in service of this goal.
My North Star has kept me afloat during challenging times.
It has given me determination in the face of obstacles and setbacks.
It has tempered me with deep gratitude when I have achieved success.
How will you find your North Star?
I would start with being true to yourself,
something we often learn far too late in life.
Do not shield or hide the things that make you different for these
are the qualities that will be your biggest strength in serving our society.
Trust in what I hope we have shown you here at Harvard Law School.
That we are all made better by learning from
those with different experiences and perspectives,
and that our country is made better when we can engage in
open and respectful dialogue and when we can find common ground.
If you have not yet found your North Star,
do not worry, there's still plenty of time.
But I caution you against being lulled into
an easy or safe path by inertia or peer pressure.
If you do not fulfilled by where life is taken you,
do not be afraid to chart your own path in service of your North Star,
even if it deviates from the path taken by others.
When you have found your North Star and when
you are pursuing the things most meaningful to you,
you will be able to fulfill the responsibility that our profession demands.
Second, I hope that you will embrace and nurture your humanity,
choosing kindness or every moment in both the law and in life.
Our ability to serve the public good depends on
your goodness and the goodness of our profession.
Our laws can only be fair and equitable if you,
the people who create, administer,
and enforce them are humane and kind.
I hope that you will be gracious and honest with
your clients and also with those opposing your clients.
Do not view those on the opposing side as villains to be vanquished,
rather listen and I mean really listen to help others
see common ground and to understand our shared humanity.
Always dedicate yourself to uplifting the culture of our profession.
Do not devalue the importance of empathy and respect.
Help your colleagues in need both professionally and
personally and celebrate the accomplishments of others.
I hope you will always strive to be kind to your loved ones.
Your parents, partners, children, and friends.
These are the people who have paved the way for you and who will
be your perpetual teachers as mine has been for me.
In the end, I think many of you will
find that it is these relationships that will sustain
you far more than any case that you ever try or client that you may represent.
Please take a moment today to hug and thank your loved ones.
Last but not least,
I hope you will be kind to yourself.
I have no doubt that you will achieve great professional success.
But remember that you are so much more than the credentials on your resume.
We're not invincible, so do not ignore your physical and mental well-being.
Take time off to recover when you inevitably experienced disappointment, pain, and loss.
Hold on to your unique interests and
talents that have nothing to do with your legal education.
According to the admissions office,
the class of 2023 is richly flowered with musicians, black belts,
published novelist, opera singers, cattle ranchers,
haunted house actors, and my personal favorite, an alpaca farmer.
Continued to enjoy these personal pursuits because they've made
you happy in the past and they will continue to do so in the future.
Now, I hope you'll humor me and let me end my remarks today
by paying tribute to the groundbreaking Academy Award-winning film,
Everything, Everywhere All at Once starring our distinguished guest of honor,
Michelle Yu [APPLAUSE].
If you saw the movie,
you may understand that many of my remarks today intersect with this fantastic film.
The protagonist, a Chinese-American immigrant named Evelyn,
played master flayed by Michelle Yu,
undergoes a transformation of sorts as she jumped for verse jumps across the multiverse.
At the end of the movie,
after she has confronted an array of perceived obstacles,
including IRS auditors,
her daughter Joy,
in the form of a nihilistic antagonist.
Her sweet and unassuming husband Raymond,
and a black hole in the shape of an everything bagel.
Evelyn has changed.
She has learned that all of us,
everyone everywhere, are dealing with everything all at once.
That it is a brave and courageous choice to fight in the face of fear,
uncertainty, and chaos with kindness.
Perhaps you and I can join Evelyn in choosing kindness.
For I believe that collectively are acts of kindness in both law and life can compound so
as to transform even the biggest of universes and
help make this universe a better place in which to live.
Thank you class of 2023 for inviting me to share this glorious day with you,
for teaching me so much over the last three years,
and for honoring me with this award.
I extend my heartfelt congratulations to you and your loved ones,
and I wish you good and fulfilling lives. Thank you. [APPLAUSE]