Dean O'Rourke, US attorney Ortiz, faculty, staff, friends, families and to the class
of 2016 graduates, good morning.
Eight months ago, when I first set foot in Boston University School of Law, I was struck
with the feeling that feeling hit me hard. It had been so long since I felt it and I have
become so alien to me that I thought I would never know it or feel it again. For the first
time in a very long time I felt I had a home. That home was the Boston University School
of Law.
I grew up in Syria in the beautiful, beautiful city of Aleppo. Aleppo, a city so big yet
so small, a city where flowers dangled from every balcony in a truly Levantine fashion
and where the petals would shiver upon the blowing of the dry air from the desert, a
city where the sun always shines, making the weather as warm as the people who speak to
each other from the heart no matter where they come from or what god they pray to. That
was my home.
Today the people of my home are the victims of the most savage of bloodsheds. The last
time I was in my country was four years ago. The months back home before I left were horrific.
Some things leave scars that will never heal and it feels like it was yesterday, yesterday
that I was in my bed wishing that all the deafening noise was just horrendous storm
in the middle of August but then my whole house would shake and I knew it was more than
just rain.
Sleepless nights turned into sleepless weeks. The power was cut in the middle of this typical
Syrian summer. The heat was so excruciating that I felt like my soul was leaving my body.
As soon as the sun would set, the shy glow of candles would take over and it was darkness
until the next day. Then the moment came when I fled my home. It was the worst day of my
life.
And last August I arrived here and it was instant. I knew exactly where I was supposed
to be. I felt I had a home. I felt at home. Soon
enough, the (()) cafe became my kitchen, the library became the spot where all my little
thoughts would wander and I would do a lot of procrastinating and the classroom became
my bedroom. Just kidding, not really.
But a home is not only defined by walls and tables and geographical places. No, a home
is a feeling. And for this feeling I have the students to thank of the JDS: First of
all, thank you. Thank you for immersing us in the American culture, and thank you for
teaching us what this country is all about. Thank you for always making us feel welcome,
thank you for your interest in our cultures and what they have to offer, and even though
you sometimes make fun of us, God knows why, you are so the most brilliant, hard-working
individuals I have ever met in my life. You should be very proud of yourselves. Congratulations.
And I would like to tell you something: that hommus you've been eating all your life
is not real hommus.So if you want to try the real deal you can give me a call or something.
And I'm sure LLMs from Mexico have a thing or two to say about your tacos...so yeah.
To the BU LLM class of 2016 in American law, IP law, banking and finance, taxation,
and international business: thank you. Thank you
for being the proud people that you are. Thank you for representing your cultural identity
with your head held high. Thank you for helping me shed light on any misconception I had about
your countries, traditions, or religious beliefs. Some of you came here and we're surrounded
with people from your own country. I did not, and yet not for one minute have I felt
lonely or alone at Boston University School of Law.
Thank you for helping me find my place in this spectacular blend. Thank you for disregarding
any political ideology your nations go by and for coming here as independent individuals.
We are living proof that a global understanding is possible and that peace will prevail. [applause]
Thank you for my new name, Habibi, which means sweetheart in Arabic - everyone has forgotten
my real name now, I'm sure - I'm Diana. And above all thank you for reminding me that
at the end of the day, the world is a beautiful place. Thank you to my professors have taught
me about American law, intellectual property law, and most importantly about the rule of
law. Thank you for making us feel like each and every one of us is a precious valuable
asset.
Thank you Dean O'Rourke and the office of graduate and international programs, aka our
dearest OGIP. Dean Ricciardi, Cara, Shannon, Andrew, Amy, and Tibby for always being
there for us: for organizing everything to its utmost detailed. Thank you for the great
moral support you provided us with throughout the years. You are truly family, a home
away from home.
I would like to thank my parents for the example they have set for me: my mom Amy and her go-get-it
attitude. My dad Tony, who always remind me to say 6 I owe everything to you. I
would like to thank my brother my voice of reason and my advisor in everything.
I would like to thank both of my grandmothers: one of them passed away in January in Syria, I
hadn't seen her in five years, and I didn't even have a chance to say goodbye. And to
my other grandmother who is stuck there there right now and could not be here with me
today. I would like to thank God for the simple fact
that I'm alive, and for that I feel truly blessed.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my country. To me, my Syria, you are a diamond
and you will always be. Thanks to you, now I will never ever take anything for granted
again, and don't you worry, I have not given up on you. After this year I am more than
ready to put you back on your feet. This much I promise you. And just like all of you've
given so much this year I would like to give back.
Just a small piece of advice that goes a very long way. Be grateful for every small blessing
you have in life and never take anything for granted.
Not the food on your plate or the air in your lungs. My friends, this is the key to happiness.
I hope you make a very good use of your blessings.
LLM was by far the best year of my life: thank you BU for giving me this wonderful
opportunity. I have found a new place of love and dreams: I have found a new home.
Thank you and congratulations.