- Why did you come to Harvard?
We all walked different paths to get here.
I came to the Kennedy School
from my small town in Michigan
(audience cheering)
as a queer,
Michigan, yes, let's go, (audience laughing)
as a queer and non-binary citizen
of the Nottawaseppi Huron band of the Potawatomi.
(audience cheering)
I never felt destined for this place,
but my application was full of grand visions of justice.
And I came here on a mission
to get land back to indigenous tribes
and to fight, (audience cheering)
and to fight for queer and trans people.
(audience cheering)
Maybe you, like me, imagined the leader you could be
or the impact you could have,
and maybe you, like me,
found that when you got here,
your biggest problem was more like
not knowing how to format your Excel spreadsheet.
(audience laughing)
So much for grand visions of leadership.
Maybe you, like me, had a quiet voice inside
that wondered whether you would make it to the ceremony
at all.
This became even more real for me five months ago.
On December 23rd, 2022,
while I was holiday shopping back home,
I was shot by two boys
in a carjacking gone wrong.
As I waited for the EMTs,
my leg went numb and I grew really tired.
And I found myself thinking,
"I am one semester away from graduating."
(audience laughing)
I know, I know.
It might be weird
that I was thinking that (audience laughing)
at that moment,
I heard the laughs.
But I had doubted whether I would be here to begin with,
and I was so close.
And I was thinking,
"Will my parents have to attend my funeral
instead of my commencement?
Have I spent all this time preparing
for a future that I won't have?"
During our time here, we've experienced a pandemic,
floods and earthquakes, wars and invasions,
daily physical and mental health struggles, and more.
When I was in the hospital relearning how to walk,
I wasn't sure how I would return here,
much less realize the future
that I'd envisioned for myself.
I couldn't see how my life would get back on track,
but I started to one step at a time.
My mom helped me get from the hospital bed to the chair.
The next day I made it to the door and back.
When friends flew in to help,
I'd ask them to join me for a walk every afternoon.
And they'd look out at the snow and the sleet
in our Michigan winter,
and they'd say something like,
"Like, outside? Really? (audience laughing)
But we went every day,
limping through a bleak Michigan winter at a snails pace.
With my mom on one side and a friend on the other,
I started to move forward.
I came to realize that I didn't need to see the destination.
All I needed to see was one next step.
We are here because we have big dreams,
and it can be scary to even imagine reaching them.
In your moments of uncertainty,
just look for that next step.
You haven't solved immigrant justice,
but you can keep using Duolingo
so you can speak to your clients in their own language.
You haven't solved residential segregation,
but you can show up to the next community meeting
on affordable housing.
And when all else fails,
you can just get eight hours of sleep
(audience laughing)
or eat something other than pizza.
(audience laughing)
Five months ago,
it seemed impossible that I would make it to the ceremony,
let alone be here on the stage
with my mom's hero, Tom Hanks.
(audience laughing) (Vic laughing)
But here I am.
(audience cheering)
And while it's me you see standing here today,
I do not stand alone.
I haven't taken a single step alone in the last five months.
Clara wrestled the insurance companies.
Ketaki cooked me biryani.
Bethany managed my entire calendar.
Countless friends, family, and strangers
have shown up for me in ways that I couldn't have imagined.
There will come a moment for each of us
where we realize that we cannot do it alone,
in fact, that we have never done it alone
and that we shouldn't do it alone.
Class of 2023,
I want you to hear me say this,
'cause I really know it to be true.
We need each other.
(audience applauding)
In your moments of doubt,
who was there with you?
Maybe it was a friend offering dinner, a call home,
a mentor with sound advice.
The poet, Gwendolyn Brooks, wrote,
"We are each other's harvest;
we are each other's business;
we are each other's magnitude and bond."
I was fortunate to find my harvest here at Harvard.
In the process of chasing your dreams,
you will need people to comfort you, to coach you,
to tell you that you have spinach in your teeth.
(audience laughing)
And when you find yourself
in your own cold Michigan winter,
you will need people to walk alongside you.
Some of those people are here today.
So this is it.
In a few moments, we will take our next step,
out of these gates and into the world.
We don't know what lies ahead,
but the next time you find yourself wondering
if you can face the challenge, today is your proof.
We made it and we will make it again,
one step at a time and never alone.
Thank you.
(audience cheering)
- [Emcee] I think Josiah, - That's beautiful.
- [Emcee] Pallas, and Vic really embodies the sense of joy.
- [Emcee] The song that's coming up
is who they are and what they do
and the idea of joy. - Tell her I love her.
- [Emcee] That was beautiful.
- Guys, turn the mics on. Okay.
Mom, raise your hand.
(audience laughing)
(audience cheering)
- [Emcee] Yeah, let's see her.
(audience cheering)