HELENA BURGUENO, PLEASE COME FORWARD.
I THINK IT WAS ABOUT TIME FOR MY DAD TO FIND OUT THAT I WAS GOING TO BE COMMENCEMENT SPEAKER.
HI, PAPA, I'M NOT GOING TO LOOK AT YOU ANYMORE, THOUGH, BECAUSE I'M GOING TO CRY.
THANK YOU, PRESIDENT MARTIN.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW ME, MY NAME IS HELENA BURGUENO.
IF YOU WANT, YOU CAN ALSO CALL ME HELENA BURGUENO, BUT I'LL BE HONEST, I REALLY DON'T LOVE IT
WHEN YOU CALL ME HELENA BURGUENO.
[LAUGHTER]
WHEN I INTRODUCE MYSELF, I AM DOING SO, IN PART, TO SAY HELLO FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME
TO ALL OF THE PARENTS AND FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT ARE HERE TO CELEBRATE WITH US TODAY.
BUT I AM ALSO SAYING HELLO FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME TO MANY OF THE MEMBERS OF MY GRADUATING
CLASS.
HI THERE.
CLASS OF 2019, I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT WHEN MY NAME GOT ANNOUNCED AS SENIOR SPEAKER, THERE
WAS A PRETTY DECENTLY SIZED CHUNK OF YOU THAT HAD NO CLUE WHO I WAS.BUT THAT'S OK.
THAT'S ACTUALLY THE REASON THAT I DECIDED TO RUN FOR SPEAKER IN THE FIRST PLACE,
BECAUSE I REALLY WANTED TO TALK ABOUT HOW MUCH IT BLOWS MY MIND THAT IN THE WHOLE HISTORY
OF THE UNIVERSE, THERE IS THIS VERY, VERY LIMITED NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO CAN HONESTLY
SAY, "I GRADUATED FROM AMHERST COLLEGE IN MAY OF 2019," AND YET SOME OF US HAVE NEVER
EVEN SEEN EACH OTHER'S FACES BEFORE.
I LOVE TO THINK ABOUT THE FACT THAT, FOR EVERY SINGLE MOMENT THAT I WAS SOMEWHERE ON THIS
CAMPUS, WHETHER I WAS LUGGING FILM EQUIPMENT TO AND FROM FAYERWEATHER, OR GOING FOR LONG
WALKS ON THE BIKE PATH, OR HALF-HEARTEDLY LIFTING THE 10-POUND WEIGHTS AT THE GYMÖ
FOR EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE MOMENTS, THERE WERE OVER 400 OF YOU OUT THERE DOING COMPLETELY
DIFFERENT THINGS IN COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PLACES, UNLESS IT WAS QUESADILLA NIGHT IN VAL, IN
WHICH CASE AT LEAST 350 OF YOU WERE, FOR SOME REASON, WAITING IN THE TRADITIONAL LINE AT
ONE TIME, IN SPITE OF THE FACT THAT YOU HAD UNLIMITED ACCESS TO TORTILLAS, CHEESE, AND
A WARM PANINI PRESS.
I'VE NEVER UNDERSTOOD THAT.
[LAUGHTER]
>> BUT AT THE SAME TIME THAT EACH OF US HAS EXPERIENCED
OUR OWN, DISTINCT VERSION OF AMHERST, IT FEELS LIKE WE SHOULD THINK OF OURSELVES AS A GROUP.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THE CLASS OF 2019 HAS BEEN THROUGH A LOT TOGETHER, BECAUSE AMHERST
HAS BEEN THROUGH A LOT IN THE PAST FOUR YEARS.
WE WERE BRAND NEW AT AMHERST DURING UPRISING, WE WITNESSED THE BIRTH OF THE MAMMOTHS AND
THE DEATH OF THE SOCIALS, WE SAW THE MOST ENORMOUS MOUND OF DIRT I HAVE EVER SEEN IN
MY LIFE TRANSFORM INTO A NEW SCIENCE CENTER.
WE DEVELOPED THE PERFECT BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE RECIPE, ONLY TO HAVE OUR BLENDERS TAKEN AWAY.
[LAUGHTER]
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?
I THINK THAT LAST ONE WAS FOR THE BEST, LET'S BE HONEST.
THAT LAST ONE WAS FOR THE BEST.
DO YOU REMEMBER THOSE PEOPLE WHO OVERDID IT WITH THE FROZEN MANGO AND THEN ENDED UP CARRYING
EIGHT CUPS OF THEIR OWN CUSTOM SMOOTHIE AROUND ON A TRAY?
BUT YOU SEE, THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT WHEN I SAY THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF HISTORY AS
A CLASS, BECAUSE - THAT MEMORY FROM OUR FIRST YEAR?
- THAT'S A 'VINTAGE AMHERST' MOMENT NOW.
SO IN MANY WAYS, THIS IS NOT THE SAME SCHOOL THAT WE APPLIED TO.
AND I CAN'T SPEAK FOR ALL OF YOU, BUT FOR ME IT'S BEEN HARD TO BE IN A PLACE THAT'S
CONSTANTLY CHANGING WHEN I MYSELF HAVE BEEN GOING THROUGH A NEW IDENTITY CRISIS ON A DAILY
BASIS.
SO, I DON'T WANT TO ROMANTICIZE MY TIME AT AMHERST.
BECAUSE THIS WAS NOT EASY.AND NOT EASY MEANS SOMETHING DIFFERENT FOR EACH OF US,
HERE'S A TEST -- AND I NEED YOUR HELP WITH THIS -- PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND IF YOU EVER
FELT PERSONALLY VICTIMIZED BY SOPHOMORE YEAR.
[LAUGHTER]
YEAH, SEE?
I MAY NOT NECESSARILY KNOW YOU, BUT LET ME TELL YOU, I FEEL YOU.
SOMETIMES, I THINK BACK TO THIS ONE PARTICULAR DAY DURING MY SOPHOMORE
YEAR WHEN I WAS SO COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED BY EVERYTHING THAT I JUST TURNED OFF THE LIGHTS
IN MY ROOM AND ATE AN ENTIRE BOX OF GRAHAM CRACKERS IN THE DARK.
AND WHEN I THINK OF THAT DAY, I GENUINELY CAN'T BELIEVE THAT I MADE IT TO THIS MOMENT
RIGHT HERE - BECAUSE WHEN YOU'RE EATING YOUR FEELINGS WITH GRAHAM CRACKERS, THAT'S A MAJOR
LOW.
[LAUGHTER]
BUT ACKNOWLEDGING HARDSHIP DOESN'T DEVALUE THE ENTIRE EXPERIENCE OF BEING HERE.
IF ANYTHING IT MAKES TODAY FEEL LIKE MORE OF A CELEBRATION, BECAUSE FOR ONE REASON OR
ANOTHER WE MADE IT THROUGH.
IN SPITE OF THE FACT THAT THERE WERE ACTUAL MINUTES AND HOURS THAT EVENTUALLY TURNED INTO
DAYS IN WHICH I WAS PERHAPS GENUINELY UNHAPPY HERE, I CAN NOW LOOK BACK AND SAY,
"I HAD A KIND OF MISERABLE SOPHOMORE YEAR".
AND HAVING THAT PERSPECTIVE, KNOWING THAT, EVEN IN THE MOST INCREDIBLY TRYING TIMES,
I WILL SOMEDAY BE ABLE TO REDUCE MY WHOLE EXPERIENCE DOWN TO A SENTENCE IF I NEED TO,
THAT'S HOW I SURVIVE.
IT DOESN'T ERASE THE HARDSHIP OR THE VERY REAL FEELINGS THAT ARE ATTACHED TO IT.
IT JUST MAKES EVERYTHING SEEM SO MUCH MORE MANAGEABLE.
EACH OF US, FOR EXAMPLE, CAN SUM UP THE PAST FOUR OR SO YEARS INTO FOUR WORDS: "I WENT
TO AMHERST."
AND MAYBE, FOR SOME OF US, THAT'S ALL WE'LL WANT TO SAY ABOUT THIS PLACE AFTER WE LEAVE
HERE, BUT, FOR ME, THAT SENTENCE FEELS NOTABLY INCOMPLETE.
IT LACKS ALL OF THE DETAILS THAT MADE BEING HERE SO SIGNIFICANT - BECAUSE, NO MATTER WHAT
YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO AMHERST COLLEGE IS LIKE, YOUR EXPERIENCE HERE WAS ALMOST CERTAINLY
THAT: SIGNIFICANT.
"I WENT TO AMHERST."
I WONDER WHAT LIES BENEATH THE SURFACE OF THAT SENTENCE FOR EACH OF YOU.
WE MAY EACH HAVE OUR OWN, INDIVIDUAL STORIES ABOUT AMHERST, BUT I HAVE A FEELING THAT THERE
ARE SOME COMMON THEMES: AN EDUCATION: ONE THAT ALLOWED YOU SPACE TO
GROW, ENCOURAGED YOU TO QUESTION WHAT YOU PERCEIVED AS FACT, AND SOMETIMES MADE YOU
CHOOSE BETWEEN SLEEPING, TAKING A SHOWER, AND COMPLETING THE MOODLE POST FOR YOUR 9
A.M.
CLASS ON TIME.
A PLACE: THIS LITTLE CAMPUS, THE COLORS OF THE HOLYOKE RANGE IN OCTOBER, THE THRILLING
RETURN OF THE ADIRONDACK CHAIRS THE INSTANT THE TEMPERATURE GOES ABOVE 6O DEGREES.
AND FINALLY, AND PERHAPS MOST IMPORTANTLY, PEOPLE:
THE FACULTY AND STAFF WHO REMINDED YOU THAT, ON TOP OF BEING A STUDENT, YOU ARE ALSO A
HUMAN BEING, THE SMALL, SUBTLE ACTS OF FRIENDSHIP THAT CARRIED YOU THROUGH YOUR GRAHAM CRACKERS
DAYS, THE GALLERY OF FACES THAT BELONG TO PEOPLE WHO SHARE YOUR SPACE BUT MAYBE NOT
YOUR COMMUNITY.
THE SPECIFIC DETAILS: THE WHO'S AND THE WHEN'S AND THE WHERE'S, THOSE ARE DIFFERENT FOR EACH
OF US.
BUT WE ALL HAVE A TRANSCRIPT OF CLASSES THAT CHANGED OUR WAY OF THINKING, A MAP OF THE
PLACES THAT WE OCCUPIED, AND A LIST, LIKE THE CREDITS AT THE END OF A FILM, OF ALL THE
PEOPLE THAT HAVE MADE THIS DAY POSSIBLE.
MAYBE WE'VE ALL JUST BEEN WRITING VARIATIONS ON THE SAME BASIC STORY THIS WHOLE TIME.
"I GRADUATED FROM AMHERST."
I KNOW THAT THIS SCHOOL HAS FORCED US ALL TO GET INTO THE HABIT OF ADAPTING QUICKLY
TO CHANGE, BUT LEAVING AMHERST IS A LIKE, A BIG CHANGE, SO IT FEELS
IMPORTANT TO ME THAT WE RECOGNIZE THAT.
SO, IN THE TIDAL WAVE OF FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHS AND CATERED SANDWICHES AND MOVING BOXES THAT
IS ABOUT TO HIT YOU THE SECOND THIS CEREMONY IS OVER, I HOPE THAT EACH OF YOU ALLOWS YOURSELF
A MOMENT TO FEEL LIKE YOU'RE IN LIMBO.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE EVERYTHING FIGURED OUT TODAY, AND YOU DEFINITELY DON'T HAVE TO
KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT LEAVING THIS PLACE.
AS SOMEONE WHO HAS NEEDED TO HAVE AT LEAST A FEW THOUGHTS FIGURED OUT IN ORDER TO GIVE
A COHERENT -- THOUGH PERHAPS OVERLY-PHILOSOPHICAL -- COMMENCEMENT SPEECH, LET ME TELL YOU, IT'S
HARDER THAN YOU MIGHT EXPECT.
HOW, FOR EXAMPLE, DO YOU DESCRIBE HOW EXCITED YOU ARE FOR WHAT IS TO COME WHEN YOU'RE PAINFULLY
AWARE OF ALL THAT YOU'RE LEAVING BEHIND?
OR HOW DOES ONE CONVEY GENUINE GRATITUDE TOWARDS THIS COLLEGE FOR THE UNIQUE AND LIFE-CHANGING
OPPORTUNITIES THAT IT HAS PROVIDED WHILE REMAINING HONEST ABOUT AMHERST'S FLAWS, AND FAILURES,
AS AN INSTITUTION?
HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE THE SENSATION OF FEELING MULTIPLE, DISTINCT EMOTIONS WHOLEHEARTEDLY,
BUT AT THE SAME TIME?
THIS GOES BEYOND BITTERSWEET, SO WE ALL NEED TO GIVE OURSELVES TIME.
IT'S OKAY TO TAKE MORE THAN A MINUTE TO ADAPT TO THIS PARTICULAR CHANGE - ALTHOUGH, FOR
THE RECORD, YOU DO HAVE TO BE CLEARED OUT OF YOUR DORM ROOM BY 5:00 PM TONIGHT, SO MAYBE
DO SOME THINKING WHILE YOU'RE PACKING.
[LAUGHTER]
FOR ME, WHEN I THINK ABOUT GRADUATING WITH ALL OF YOU, I'M THINKING ABOUT THIS MOMENT
IN HISTORY THAT WE ALL JUST HAPPEN TO HAVE SHARED BY VIRTUE OF BEING IN THIS VERY PARTICULAR
PLACE AT THE SAME TIME.
I'M THINKING ABOUT THE FACT THAT, BEFORE STEPPING ONTO CAMPUS FOR THE FIRST TIME, I DIDN'T KNOW
A SINGLE ONE OF YOU EXISTED.AND NOW, I LOOK IN FRONT OF ME, AND I SEE FRIENDS, AND A WHOLE
LOT OF STRANGERS.
ALSO THAT ONE GUY THAT I ALWAYS RUN INTO ON A-LEVEL FROST.
YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW WHO YOU ARE, BUT I DO.
[LAUGHTER]
I'M THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE COME AND GONE DURING OUR TIME HERE, THE
FRIENDS AND CLASSMATES THAT HAVE TAKEN LEAVE OR TRANSFERRED,
THE FRIENDS THAT WE'VE HAD TO MOURN, AND WE HOW MUCH WE MISS THEM.
I'M THINKING ABOUT THE IMPACT THAT WE'VE HAD ON ONE ANOTHER, HOW EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US
HAS HELPED SOMEONE ELSE TO GROW, EVEN IF IT WAS IN SOME SMALL, UNEXPECTED WAY, BECAUSE
IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE NOT TO.
I, FOR INSTANCE, WILL NEVER FORGET THE DAY THAT I WALKED INTO VAL AS A MEEK, INNOCENT
FIRST-YEAR AND SAW A CLASSMATE TAKE A FISTFUL OF LO MEIN NOODLES, STUFF THEM IN A NAPKIN,
AND THEN SHOVE THAT NAPKIN INTO HIS COAT POCKET AND LEAVE.
[LAUGHTER]
AND, I'M LIKE 93% SURE THAT THIS MAN DOESN'T REMEMBER THAT MOMENT AT ALL, BUT I THINK ABOUT
IT ALL THE TIME.
SO WHEN THAT FATEFUL DAY CAME THAT I NEEDED TO STEAL A TON OF ROASTED SWEET POTATOES FROM
VAL TO MAKE A FRIENDSGIVING PIE, WHO DO YOU THINK WAS THE WIND BENEATH MY WINGS?
[LAUGHTER]
AS I BOLDLY DECIDED THAT MY ONLY OPTION FOR SMUGGLING THEM OUT OF THE DINING HALL WAS
TO FILL MY COAT SLEEVES WITH SWEET POTATOES INSTEAD OF ARMS AND WALK OUT LIKE THIS?
[LAUGHTER]
[CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] AND FINALLY, WHEN I THINK ABOUT GRADUATING
FROM COLLEGE, I'M THINKING ABOUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES
ME MOST EXCITED ABOUT MY POST-AMHERST LIFE IS THE POSSIBILITY THAT I MIGHT BRING SOME
OF YOU INTO IT WITH ME.
I'M THINKING ABOUT SEEING YOU IN COMPLETELY DIFFERENT CITIES, ON COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
COASTS, AND INVITING YOU OVER TO MY IMPECCABLY DECORATED APARTMENT TO MAKE GUACAMOLE AND
MOJITOS.
AND IN BETWEEN BITES WE'LL TALK ABOUT OUR NEW LIVES AND OUR CUTE CO-WORKERS, COMMISERATE
ABOUT THE STRUGGLES OF MAKING FRIENDS IN THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE, BRAG ABOUT FINDING
AN AFFORDABLE APARTMENT WITH NOT ONE, BUT TWO WINDOWS!
[LAUGHTER]
AND THEN, MAYBE, TOWARDS THE END OF THE NIGHT, WHEN THE GUACAMOLE STARTS TURNING BROWN, WE'LL
REMINISCE ABOUT AMHERST.
WE'LL GOSSIP ABOUT WHO ENDED UP GETTING MARRIED TO WHO AND SHARE A LOT OF OH-MY-GOSH-I-FORGOT-ABOUT-THAT'S
AND SPEND AT LEAST AN HOUR DEBATING WHETHER OR NOT FACILITIES ACTUALLY USED SOY SAUCE
TO MELT ICE IN THE WINTER.
AS A SIDE NOTE, IF ANYBODY CAN DEFINITIVELY CONFIRM OR DENY THE FACT THAT FACILITIES USES
SOY SAUCE TO MELT THE ICE IN THE WINTER, PLEASE COME FIND ME AFTER THE CEREMONY AND HELP ME
PUT THIS TO REST ONCE AND FOR ALL, I AM BEGGING YOU.
[LAUGHTER]
SO, CLASS OF 2019, I HAVE NO INSPIRATIONAL QUOTES OR WORDS OF ADVICE FOR YOU ALL.
JUST A WHOLE LOT OF THOUGHTS AND GRATITUDE.
BECAUSE, MAYBE, WAY DOWN THE ROAD, WE'RE GOING TO LOOK BACK AND REALIZE THAT OUR YEARS AT
AMHERST WERE THE HAPPIEST OF OUR LIFEÖBUT I CERTAINLY HOPE NOT.
[LAUGHTER]
THAT SAID, THIS HAS BEEN A MEMORABLE AND SIGNIFICANT CHAPTER, ONE THAT WE'VE UNKNOWINGLY WRITTEN
TOGETHER - AND I'M GRATEFUL TO ALL OF YOU FOR THAT, EVEN IF I'VE NEVER SEEN YOUR FACE
BEFORE.
THANK YOU.
[CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]