When June rolls around again each year, it tends to make me think about the value of my own education. This is represented by those three pieces of paper that hang on the wall just above my toilet, and are barely worth the fancy parchment paper tghat they are printed on, let alone the price of college admission. But there are a few time-honored and sacred traditions that I have nothing but respect for-one being that oh-so-holy day known as graduation and commencement. And along with this tradition comes another: the senior quotation. With this little tidbit of wisdom plastered underneath your headshot in the school yearbook, you feel like you can face the world. And, well, it might even be the one thing you retain from your education. So here are a few contenders for the smart-alecks among us:
1. From kindergarten to graduation, I went to public schools, and I know that they are a key to being sure that every child has a chance to succeed and to rise in the world.” -Dick Cheney
This quote is funny in its seriousness. While Dick Cheney may have gone to public schools, this waspy, affluent curmudgeon is hardly the poster-child for a public education. Besides, any graduate of public schools can attest to the fact that they hardly feel like the “key” to anyone’s success.
2. “Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” -Winston Churchill
For any graduate, whether entering college or the workforce, this vague idea of “success” is the ultimate goal. No one wants to fail, but it’s important to understand that inevitably you will, and it’s best to keep a good sense of humor about it.
3. “It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education” -Albert Einstein
Graduates, remember that while education is important, so is having an open mind. While it’s easy to simply adopt the opinions of your teachers, it’s far more interesting to develop opinions of your own.
4. Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.” -Will Durant
The more you learn, graduates, the more you will realize how dumb you’ve been up until this moment.
5. “If you want to get laid, go to college. If you want an education, go to the library.” -Frank Zappa
Whether you’re graduating from college, or from high school, you can benefit from knowing that the best learning you will do is the learning you do on your own, researching that which interests you.
6. “Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” -Dale Carnegie
And, for those of you already worrying about tomorrow, what are you doing to make today the best that it can be?
7. “If A equals success, then the formula is: A = X + Y + Z, X is work. Y is play. Z is keep your mouth shut.” -Albert Einstein
No one knows quite like Einstein that the ability to bite your tongue is invaluable in achieving success.
8. “Common sense and education are highly compatible; in fact, neither is worth much without the other.” -Donald G. Smith
We have all known those people who could analyze a formula or Proust with their eyes shut, but not be able to figure out how to sit on the toilet. Don’t be that person, graduates. What you learn in the world is just as important as what you learn in school.
9. Game shows are designed to make us feel better about the random, useless facts that are all we have left of our education.” -Chuck Palahniuk
Twenty years from now, you will likely not need to know who the emperor of China was under the Ming Dynasty. That is, unless you plan on being a contestant on “Millionaire” or “Jeopardy”.
10. A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that ‘individuality’ is the key to success.” -Robert PurvisAbove all, graduates, be yourselves.
