- Greetings from Massachusetts Hall.
This is where I used to come to work.
I actually haven't done that
for 440 days now and counting, but who's counting?
This building, the oldest on campus,
has been part of the yard since 1720.
If it could talk, it would tell tales
of George Washington and the troops
he quartered here during the Revolutionary War.
Tales of John Adams hurrying in and out as a young man,
carefully scribbling the day's weather in his diary.
Tales of the handful of you
who called its fourth floor home as first-year students,
This building is a testament to the strength and resilience
of Harvard and its people.
Brick by beautiful brick, it was built by individuals
who did not yet dream of United States of America.
People who could not yet dream of the university,
into which you entered as students,
from across the country and across the world,
with circumstances and experiences as varied
as your extraordinary achievements.
Welcome members of the Harvard Class of 2021,
and congratulations.
You're on the brink of joining one of the world's
most accomplished communities of alumni.
The community that for nearly 400 years,
has connected the age that is past
to the age that is waiting before.
That line from our alma mater,
puts the vexing present
into a more welcome context.
This too shall pass.
A global pandemic has kept us apart this year,
but we've learned together, we've grown together,
and we have overcome together.
I've never seen such grit, such determination,
and I have never, ever been prouder of this institution.
So while this is not the moment you imagined
when you began your course of study,
take a moment to appreciate all that this age
has actually given you.
No commencement tickets, everyone could come.
No parking drama, and let's face it, 0% chance of rain,
Front row seats for everyone you love
and everyone who loves you,
and well-deserved hoots and hugs and hollers
and high-fives as your degree is actually conferred.
One day, you will celebrate your graduation on campus
with classmates and friends in familiar places.
And that day cannot come soon enough.
For now however, delight in the company
of those who've cheered you on and cheered you up.
Those who've urged determination
in the face of disenchantment.
Those who've supplanted languish with levity,
with hope, with joy.
Those who have sacrificed so much
so you can be here.
One of a number of things that is unusual
about this celebration,
is that many of you are actually
sitting right now next to your families and loved ones.
People who have in some cases
become your unexpected suite-mates
over the course of this past year.
No one accomplishes anything in life on his or her own.
Your loved ones have nurtured and supported you
on this journey that has led you to this day.
I want you to actually take a minute now and thank them,
for all that they've done to get you to this moment.
Go ahead, give them a hug of thanks.
They deserve it.
And now we'll pause while you do that.
I hope you will delight too
in the colossal feat of your arrival.
Consider the days, the months,
the years of relentless effort,
in some cases of stunning failure,
but also thrilling triumph.
Consider what you sacrificed and what you gained.
Consider who you were when you got here,
and who you are now as you leave.
When it was that you most grew in knowledge and in wisdom,
and where you will go from here.
This moment is meant for you and will be yours forever.
Fair Harvard welcomes you at last into her storied company.
And I send you into a new age
on the wings of wishes,
born from familiar lyrics.
May you think freely and bear patiently
those who think differently.
May you quicken the currents
of truth in every field and discipline,
and hasten the world to better days.
May your destinies like our beloved universities
be onward and bright.
Congratulations members of the Harvard
Class of 2021, and Godspeed.