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Farewell Address
by Lilian Chao
My dear Students:
I want to say something to you today which I feel would not
be appropriate to say at tomorrow's dinner that you are going to give in honor
of us teachers. Today's words are not congratulatory, but words of advice and
warning.
The time has come for me to retire, not only because I have come to
the age of retirement, but also, after forty-five years of teaching. I am
physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted. You are probably the last class
I shall ever teach. My hopes for you are high, and it is my fervent prayer that
you will not disappoint me. During the past years, I have been deeply unhappy to
see many of my students forget the warmth and enthusiasm of their student days
only a few years after leaving school. They have become immersed in the sloughs
of society and have lost the values and ideals of their youth. What has done
this? The pursuit of money and power which has taken hold of their minds and
souls.
Truly, money is important, but it does not deserve to be pursued
with the best of your abilities. From the history of mankind, we well know that
selfish wealth is something which ruins all that is good and beautiful in life.
The pursuit of money for yourself will never satisfy you. The more you get, the
more you will want. You will never get enough, and you won't stop pursuing money
to the day you draw your last breath.
Experience has taught me that money brings vice and bitterness, not
contentment and happiness. Take myself for instance, I was born in a rich
family, and when I grew up, I married into an even richer family. But
unfortunately, it was wealth that divided my family and lengthened the distance
between me and those near and dear to me. Money deprived me of all the happiness
in my life. Money brought me nothing but sorrow and bitter regrets. That is why
I hope not one of you will become a millionaire , and lose the true blessings of
life, for money can easily bring you misfortune.
Money is usually accompanied by power and can buy power.
Power is often a great temptation to young people. Perhaps you are still too
young to realize how terrible power is. I have seen many promising youths who
sought power and were destroyed by power.
It is my hope that each one of you will carry out his own
responsibilities and the obligations of his own work to the best of his
abilities. Our nation is now going through a life and death struggle, it is the
duty of each one of us to do the work best fitted for us, and do it to the
utmost of our ability. Each one of you must do your very best for our country
and our people. There is an old proverb which says, "A great river is made
up of myriads of drops of water.") Each one of you is like a drop water.
Alone you are nothing, together you can form a mighty body of water that will be
strong enough to turn the wheels of time and circumstance.
Like young birds, you are soon to leave this nest and fly
alone. My hope is that you will not fly too dangerously high, but will fly
smoothly and safely through all the storms of life.
The last point I wish to impress upon you is 'Never depend upon
anyone but yourself. Never be lax or careless because you have kind parents,
loving friends or powerful relatives to depend upon. Experience has taught me
that all these will pass away. In this world of change and uncertainty, what
have you to depend on? Nothing, but yourself. You must have strong confidence in
yourself, bred from what you have studied and from the experiences gained from
your teachers. No one can be by your side always throughout your life. Even
though you have a strong family background and influential relatives and
friends, they cannot add to or detract from what is truly you. Drink always from
the fountain of knowledge, and never be afraid to learn.
Remember that all love is sacrifice. Your life is not your
own, but belongs to your country. If you love your country, you must devote
yourself to it.
Again I repeat, never rely upon anyone for anything. Remember
'God helps those who help themselves.' You are the masters of your fate. It is a
poor excuse to say that Fate is your master.
My sight becomes more and more blurred as I go farther and
farther away from the center of this world but you are now approaching that
which I am now leaving. I do not feel downhearted or unhappy, for what is taking
place is a law of great, mysterious nature. There is always some life growing
old and fading away while new life is coming into being and growing and becoming
stronger and stronger.
I have no gift to give you for your graduation. But my little
store of knowledge and experience I now pass on to you. There is one parting
thought I wish to leave with you. Wherever you go, and whatever you do, act a
true Chinese and acting as a true Chinese have been the mainsprings of my life.
I am proud, not of my meager knowledge, but of the chance
that I have had to pass it on, small as it is to you, the younger generation.
Please make the best use of what I have taught you. I desire that you should
devote all your knowledge and ability to your country throughout your lives.
Maybe we shall never meet again in the future, but even so,
let whatever I have given you during your school years be used by you in your
lives, and thus we will never be parted. A part of me will always be with you
and the generations that follow you.
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