Ladies and gentlemen of the class of â97:
Wear sunscreen.
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen
would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been
proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no
basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will
dispense this advice now.
Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind.
You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth
until theyâve faded. But trust me, in 20 years, youâll look
back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you canât grasp
now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you
really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.
Donât worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying
is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing
bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things
that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you
at 4Â pm on some idle Tuesday.
Do one thing every day that scares you.
Sing.
Donât be reckless with other peopleâs hearts. Donât put up with
people who are reckless with yours.
Floss.
Donât waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes youâre ahead,
sometimes youâre behind. The race is long and, in the end,
itâs only with yourself.
Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you
succeed in doing this, tell me how.
Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.
Stretch.
Donât feel guilty if you donât know what you want to do with
your life. The most interesting people I know didnât know at
22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most
interesting 40-year-olds I know still donât.
Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. Youâll miss them
when theyâre gone.
Maybe youâll marry, maybe you wonât. Maybe youâll have children,
maybe you wonât. Maybe youâll divorce at 40, maybe youâll dance
the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you
do, donât congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself
either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody elseâs.
Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Donât be afraid of
it or of what other people think of it. Itâs the greatest
instrument youâll ever own.
Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.
Read the directions, even if you donât follow them.
Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.
Get to know your parents. You never know when theyâll be gone
for good. Be nice to your siblings. Theyâre your best link to
your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the
future.
Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few
you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography
and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need
the people who knew you when you were young.
Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.
Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you
soft. Travel.
Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians
will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, youâll
fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable,
politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.
Respect your elders.
Donât expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust
fund. Maybe youâll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when
either one might run out.
Donât mess too much with your hair or by the time youâre 40 it
will look 85.
Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who
supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way
of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting
over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than itâs worth.
But trust me on the sunscreen.
