Until the very moment that the 2015 graduation exercises began on May 31, it seemed that starting 30 minutes early would achieve the preferred, pleasant, outdoor ceremony and avoid the noontime storm in the forecast. But as soon as the seniors set out in their procession, crossing the Circle to Eliot Hall, a steady rain began to fall. Taking it in stride, the classmates carried on and maintained the usual pace, ignoring whatever showers came and went for the rest of the morning.
“The good news is that it is rain and not snow,” quipped retiring Board President Pete Olney ’66, presiding over his final commencement. Having sat on the same benches as the seniors – albeit 49 years earlier (and dry, he noted) – Pete reflected on their shared Middlesex legacy, which he traced to founder Frederick Winsor’s dream “of a school that was devoted not just to education but to integrity and service.” Borrowing several phrases from the School hymn, Pete concluded, “I urge you to live ‘lives that speak’ and to do ‘deeds that beckon’ because ‘what they dreamed be yours to do.’ Your best days are ahead of you.”
Author and former Freshman English teacher Eric Kester ’04 focused on two other facets of Middlesex’s legacy: the versatility and resilience students develop from being required to try a variety of endeavors and the network of lasting friendships. With his characteristic humor, Eric related several anecdotes from his student days at Middlesex and Harvard, where he habitually defined himself as a football player until forced to explore other latent talents, like writing for his schools’ newspapers. “That activity, to my great surprise, led me to other writing opportunities,” Eric said, “which led after college to a literary career path, which, in turn, led me to one of the greatest joys and honors of my life: teaching you guys.”
In the uncertain days ahead in college, Eric encouraged the seniors to take comfort in the fact that at Middlesex, they have become “master tightrope walkers” who nonetheless have “a permanent safety net in your own hearts and its twine is made of the people sitting around you this morning.” This, he said, “is the gift of Middlesex to take with you into your beautiful, undefined future.”
Echoing this idea, Valedictorian Alex Rego was appreciative of the shared experiences that had drawn a group of distinct individuals together and bonded them as the class of 2015. And though their time on campus had come to an end, he proposed, “Let’s sustain these relationships and not think of leaving as a loss.” Referencing a T. S. Eliot quotation ,“The end is where we start from,” Alex closed by saying, “Let’s not forget all that Middlesex has given us, but I think we’re all ready to make from this end a new beginning.”
The remarks of Head of School Kathy Giles expanded upon Alex’s optimism for a “new beginning” – and harkened back to the “deeds that beckon” mentioned by Pete – as she elaborated on the inspirational words of Eleanor Roosevelt: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Now that the seniors had realized earlier goals, such as college admission, Kathy recommended that they revisit and renew their aspirations on departing from Middlesex. “I hope the dreams you build can be more than strategic or successful or even worthy,” she said. “I hope that they can incorporate the beauty that inspires your belief and that of those around you, that they can create love, wisdom, and justice in a world that needs your help, your leadership, and your belief.”
With that, Kathy and Pete awarded diplomas to the 96 members of the class of 2015, bringing a somewhat soggy ceremony to its customary celebratory close.