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Mrs. Bush-Wellesley College Commencement Address 6/1/90 [OA 5374]
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Mrs. Bush-Wellesley College Commencement Address 6/1/90 [OA 5374]
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These records pertain to Mrs. Bush's speech at Wellesly College.
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McNally/Dooley
May 21, 1990
Draft Two (WELLSLEY)
REMARKS FOR MRS. BUSH: WELLESLEY COLLEGE COMMENCEMENT
SEVERANCE GREEN
WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS
FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 1990
Thank you, President Keohane, and good morning to you all.
At last. I finally get a chance to prove I'm more than just
a pretty face. III
There's a famous line here at Wellesley, a kind of informal
motto, that graduates are supposed to invoke when faced with a
tough challenge. And I'm going to use it the next time I'm
nervous about a speech. The motto is:
"I know I can do this. I did it at Wellesley." 1111
But I am thrilled to be with you here, and thrilled that
Raisa Gorbachev was able to join us. Before we left, Mikhail
told me personally that he foresees a new era of peace and
harmony. I told him that I was also confident of continued warm
relations between the United States and the Soviet Union. He
said: "Yes -- but I was referring to you and Wellesley!" III
I did try to get the President to come. I told George I
might as well face up to the fact that I was invited here only
because of the popularity and prominence of the sweet soul who
shares my bedroom at the White House. He said: "They invited
you to Wellesley because of Millie?!" 1111
Walking through this tree-lined campus, I was reminded of my
first visit to Wellesley, more than 10 years ago, when I was
invited here to talk about my experiences in China. I was struck
both by the spirit of the place and by the natural beauty of the
2
campus -- certainly among the world's most picturesque.
But Wellesley is not just a place but an idea -- an experi-
ment in excellence -- a continuing experiment in which diversity
is not only tolerated -- but embraced. It's a tradition that
reminds me of my return last year to one of your sister colleges,
and the student body president's incredibly moving speech about
tolerance. She told a story by Robert Fulghum, about a
children's game called "Giants, Wizards, and Dwarfs. "
It's a large-scale version of "Rock, Paper, and Scissors."
Fulghum instructed the children: "You have to decide now, which
you are -- a giant, a wizard, or a dwarf!" But then a small girl
tugged on his pants leg and asked: "But where do the mermaids
stand?" "You see, " she said, "I am a mermaid."
That little girl knew what she was, and was not about to
give up on either her identity or the game. She intended to take
her place, wherever mermaids fit into the scheme of things.
Where do the mermaids stand -- and all those who are
different, those who do not fit the standard boxes and
pigeonholes? "Answer that question," says Fulghum, "and you can
build a school, a nation, or a whole world on it."
As that very wise young woman said last year, "diversity"
-- like everything worth having -- requires effort. Effort by
everyone to learn about and respect difference, to be compas-
sionate with one another, to cherish our own personal dignity and
identity -- and to unconditionally accept the same in all others.
I say this proudly, as a salute to Wellesley's multi-
3
cultural tradition -- and no, not even slightly, as a critique of
the recent, very healthy debate. The discussion on this campus
has been far-ranging, passionate -- and most of all -- genuine.
It's been a testament to Wellesley and the unique value of
women's colleges, which, after all, represent the very embodiment
of diversity and choice.
Still, I know I wasn't your first choice as speaker. But
I'm used to that. I was second lady for eight years! III
Your first choice was Alice Walker, known for The Color
Purple. Instead you got me -- known for the color of my hair!
Of course, Alice Walker's book has a special resonance here.
At Wellesley, each class is known by a special color -- and for
four years the Class of '90 has worn the color purple. And at
Wellesley, as in the book, the color purple means different
things to different people. Purple can be the color of glory --
reserved for royalty and kings. And purple can be the color of
pain
the red-blue blush of a childhood bruise.
For four years, all 600 have worn the color purple. But
today you meet on Severance Green to say goodbye to all that
to begin a new and very personal journey
a continuing search
to find your own true colors.
In the world that awaits beyond the arches of Waban Lake, no
one can say what your true colors will be. But this I know: You
are young and gifted and well-educated. You have a first-class
education from a first-class school. And so you need not,
probably cannot, live a "paint-by-numbers" life. Decisions are
4
not irrevocable. Choices do come back. And it is within the
power of every Wellesley graduate to make her true colors
"brilliant to the point of scandal, fierce beyond belief."
And as you set off from Wellesley, I also hope that many of
you will consider three special opportunities.
The first is to believe in something larger than yourself,
to get involved in some of the big ideas of your time.
The second is the opportunity to have fun. When you entered
Wellesley four years ago, the summer's favorite movie was about
America's most admired philosopher-truant -- Ferris Buehler's Day
Off. III "Life moves pretty fast," says Ferris. "Ya don't stop
and look around once in a while, ya gonna miss it." III
And the third opportunity is the most fun of all: The
opportunity to be a successful parent. During these past four
years, you have had impressed upon you the importance to your
career of dedication and hard work. I hope that, in making that
point, another has not been neglected.
As important as your obligations as a student or future
doctor or lawyer or business leader may be -- you are a human
being first. A husband or a wife first. A father or a mother
first. A son or a daughter first. A friend first.
How sad it would be to fail at one of these positions,
whatever your success in your career! Relationships are the most
important investment you can make.
At the end of your life, you will never regret not having
passed one more test, won one more verdict, closed one more deal.
5
You may regret not having spent more time with a husband or wife,
a son or daughter, a parent or a friend. In the final analysis,
a busy career cannot compare with their companionship and love.
In leaving you with this message, let me be especially clear
about one thing. I no longer believe
that you have to be
married
or have children
in order to be happy. But if
you do -- if you do make that choice -- then you have a
responsibility. You cannot put individual career triumphs over
shared family joys. Who we are matters more than what we have.
And that goes not only for a woman -- but also for a man. III
Recently my son Marvin told me he couldn't come to some
event, that he had to, quote, "babysit for the kids.' I told
him: "Marvin -- when they're your own children -- it's not
called "babysitting!" III
We are in a transitional era right now
strange and
fascinating and exhilarating times
learning how to adjust.
Maybe it should be faster. Maybe it should be slower. But
whatever the era, whatever your times, one thing has never
changed. Fathers and mothers -- if you do have children -- they
must come first. III Because your success as a family -- and
our success as a people -- depends not on what happens inside the
White House -- but what happens inside your house.
For over 50 years, it was said that the winner of Welles-
ley's annual hoop race would be the first to get married. Now
they say the winner will be the first to become a CEO. Both are
the stereotypes of their eras. Both show too little tolerance
6
for those who want to know where the mermaids stand. And that's
why both are wrong. And so I offer for you today a new legend:
That the winner of the race will be the first to realize not
society's dream -- but her dream -- her own personal dream.
And who knows? Somewhere out in this audience may even be
someone who will one day follow in my footsteps, and preside over
the White House as the President's spouse. I wish him well. III
The controversy ends here. But our conversation is only
beginning. And so as you leave Wellesley today, take with you my
deep thanks for the courtesy and honor you have shared with Raisa
Gorbachev and me, not just a graduation -- but a graduation with
the Class of 1990. May your future be worthy of your dreams.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of
America.
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