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HFI 2019毕业生演讲稿选辑 by Katerina Yang

2019.08.28

HFI 2019毕业生演讲稿选辑——Katerina Yang

入读院校:美国约翰霍普金斯大学


Dear teachers, parents, and students from the class of 2019:


Good afternoon! I'm Junhan Yang, and I am honored to be here today as the valedictorian of class of 2019. This morning, when I put on my academic dress, and received the pretty bouquet from my parents, I felt something different in my position as an individual. The sunshine of June, Guangzhou has a mature radiance that is unknown to spring. I realize now, formally, at the edge of graduation, I began to be viewed as a college student, a female citizen, and an independent young adult. I also realize that my 18-years long journey of learning and exploring has entered a new stage with both tranquility and thrill. Looking back to my childhood and teenage, I found "learning" as the essence of my life experience, and that its meaning has deepened and enlarged with the passage of time, which when I recognized, instilled me with amazement and move.


Learning started as a new-born baby's toddling and babbling. At the beginning, it was largely a biological process, helping us to survive as a living creature. Afterwards, learning started to display itself in classroom, at crossroad, during family assembly and at other places as rules and instructions, with which we observed others' perceptions and reactions to fit in the term "social animals." Entering middle school, learning gradually stretched its pawns and claws. Countless homework and tests threatened frightful students with "high school entrance exam" and "the promised future." But until the end of middle school, learning left only a vague self-depiction of the learner, whose identity and passion was still largely unknown.


It was not until I stepped into the gate of high school that the innocent ignorance about "me" created a permeant feeling with obscure fear and confusion. And it was with a strong expectation that I commenced my learning in high school, expecting the advent of a metamorphosis transferring me into one of the previous confident, self-aware seniors. This shared expectation determined the main note of my high school education: learning "to be." The fog-free ending of my senior years changed my impression and memory towards the seemed long-lasting struggles with SAT, AP, TOEFL, essays, group projects, activities, as well as all the wet, miserable, hair-losing nights at dorms. The previous nightmares became the kiss of growth. Indeed, going through released pain and added joy.


I am always grateful of meeting awesome teachers with professional knowledge and admirable personalities, who taught me the balance and interactions between ideals and realities through history, psychology, economics, literature, sciences, mathematics, and more; who taught me life has more approaches to unfold itself than following the settled routes and the easy ways; who taught me that learner and teacher are equal and switchable roles who look to each other for progress with respect and awe.


I am always grateful of getting to know so many talented classmates with unique characteristics, who helped extend the norm of excellence with their initiative songs, poems, photography, dances, spoons and forks, well-organized philosophy seminars, various sport tournaments, sparkling rainbow-colored T-shirts, and critical but defendable voices and concerns towards migrant workers, handicapped children, and our campus’ sanitary conditions, etc.


I also became grateful of the arduous, gruesome college application process for training my resilience, awakening my curiosities and passions, and making the easy, simple "me" grow into the sharper, warmer, and more thoughtful being.


High school education at HFI therefore helped me to get closer to my true self and define my own characters, revealed to me my advantages and flaws, likes and dislikes, and assisted me to recognize my own opinions and my cares and cares-not. Consistently exposing to different opinions also enhanced my openness and prepared me to be tough when facing conflicting sayings.


But at a transitional stage right now, I can't help but to wonder the infinite possibilities on the other side of the Pacific Ocean, the circumstances of being not only a Chinese student, but a minority in a foreign country, and to wonder what education can offer me that is beyond individual importance. The disappearance of the wall separating campus from society will force us to act as a social person with "student" as a partial label. The sophisticated one will say, stepping into society means learning to hide one's horns and remarks, to accept the mainstream culture, and to "do the right things in the right age." But is there actually any absolute rights or wrongs in our life? Do we strive for a good college only to play safe, to narrow down our vision with ease, and sacrifice all the abundant spirits and imaginations for a sense of comfort?


I hold my answer as negative to all those doubts, because I believe college education is not aimed at preparing us for waking up one day after decades and finding ourselves alone because we pay years only FOR our own goodness. Rather, I hope we can use the big dreams and persistent investigations that are peculiar to youth to insist our own realities, to gamble with risks and insecurities, FOR the well-beings of people and regions other than ourselves, while always stay humble and rational to cope with the limitation our insufficient life experience draws. And the most valuable college education helps us to achieve that. But at this ready state, there are several ideas we should always keep in mind.


We are going to start a journey where the destination is distant. Somewhere during our growth process, we may be so absorbed in facing new ideas and dealing with personal worries that we turn a blind eye to the ordinary. But what is common is not always common. Dear fellows, it's not our scores and diligence alone earning us the opportunities we have and let us sit here. We sit here because of the devotion of families, our parents' times and financial supports, the peace our society maintains. There is no granted thing in this world, and privileges come with a cost. It is thus important to counteract with our unconscious "matter of course" mindset with a humble and empathetic mind, to cherish the things and love we possess, to value the leaves and woods, and to care for people around us. Thinking big but acting small is not heroic. 


In the next four years, we will live on ourselves and be given more freedom of choices than ever before. Colleges seldom set limits to students' thinking and action. There are countless ways to spend your days, and the easy ways oftentimes look more alluring. I think college life is about trial and error, and this time, we are not only about to learn from textbooks and school works, but also about to learn from relationships, interns, parties, and our life experience at large. The lessons we learn and the habits we form will be our life-long companion, predicting how far we can get. As a result, I want to say: be serious and persistent. It is true that we only live once so we take adventures, but it is also true that since we have but one life, we could not undo the past and are responsible for the outcome of your decisions. "Your path, even if it's a strange and clumsy path, will be wholly yours." (Natalie Portman) and the biggest rewards come to those who go through doubts and failures.


Being a new adult to this world, I also want to discuss our position in our era. Recently I read about stories of previous Chinese students who studied abroad and looked for the change in their roles and motives. Back to 19th century, intellectuals like Yanfu and Ronghong, the latter was the first Chinese student studying at Yale, went west and brought back advanced scientific knowledge and philosophies to their homeland and promoted the reactive industrialization in order to confront the invasion of imperialism; in the 20th, international students assisted in the various national enlightenment movements, launched revolutions and asked indignantly for national autonomy and independence; entering the new millennium, new problems and focuses emerged with the development of technology, commercialization, globalization, and digitization. Things and individual destinies seem quite precarious and uncertain. The interests and motives of studying abroad started to divert. Some scholars went beyond national boundaries and made an endeavor to raise human races as a whole. And each of us will need to find our own missions on our own.


Standing between different cultures, ideologies, and traditions, we are introduced with multiple identities, which bring excitement but also quandaries. But as the author of the book Sapines Yuval Noah Harari put it, there are common grounds in the middle. The evolvement of human race is an endless relay run, with each individual playing a baton. The better I run, the better we run. We are brought up by a country known for its hybridity and cultural thickness. Nurtured by such an old civilization, we inherit its generosity and adaptability. So I'm firmly convinced that we can think critically, adopt good ideas, and correct our directions; concern about the worldwide changes and human well-beings, and  use our knowledge and skills making our globe a better place, to make connections and improvements, to reach harmony and forgiveness for people and the world. This is our identity and mission.


Dear fellows, more challenges are waiting, but I am positive that we can equip ourselves with curiosity and creativity, with empathy and conscientiousness, with knowledge and experiences, to make our voices matter and our ideas work. I am positive that we will harvest the ability of devotion and a better and stronger version of ourselves four years from now.   


In the end, I want to thank all the parents and teachers for your selfless commitment and sagacious guidance, for being proud on our achievements and being patient when we seemed lost. I want to thank our whole class of 2019 for being helpful, for bringing me motivation and inspiration with your own willpowers and thinking. I sincerely wish all of you a happy, healthy, and fulfilled future.


Stay gold and salute to yourself! Congratulations on graduation! You make it! Thank you!



中文翻译(供参考)


亲爱的老师、家长、2019届的全体同学们,


下午好!


我是2019届毕业生杨钧涵,很荣幸能够作为毕业生代表进行发言。今晨,当我换上学士服、接过爸妈准备的毕业花束时,我感到作为一个个体,变化正在悄然发生。六月广州的阳光带上了春天不曾有的熟稔。我突然意识到,在毕业之际,我正式成为了一个准大学生,一个女性公民,一个独立的年轻成年人。我还意识到我长达18年的学习探索之旅在无声之中进入了一个崭新的阶段。回顾儿时和少年,我发现“学习”一直是我人生经历的核心。而当我意识到学习的意义在时光流转中不断变得深厚时,我不禁讶然一动。


学习始于婴孩的蹒跚学步、咿呀学语。在生命之初,它是生物性的,教会我们如何更好的生存。随后不久,学习开始作为规则和指南在教室里、马路上、家庭聚会中,以及其他生活场景中进行着,让我们从他人的言行反应中习得作为社会动物(所需要的常识)。初中以来,学习开始露出了它的爪牙。堆积成山的作业与考试不断用“中考”和“美好的未来”来恐吓无助的学生们,且直到初中的结束,学习也仅给学生们留下了关于他们自己的一个模糊画像,隐藏着不为人知的个体身份与热忱。


当踏进高中校园的大门时,我才开始感受到对于“我“自己天真的无知带来的笼罩心头的恐惧与迷茫。于是在一份强烈的期望下我开启了我的高中生涯,期待着某一天我能够蜕变成了解自己、充满自信的众多高三学子中的一员。这份大家共有的期盼决定了我高中三年学习的主旋律:学会为人、做我自己。当来到高三的尾声,云雾皆散时,我转变了对待挣扎于SAT,AP,托福,论文,小组作业,活动以及在宿舍里度过的无数个潮湿又“凄凄惨惨戚戚”的漫漫长夜的印象。曾经的噩梦变成了成长的吻痕。确实,战胜困难永远会洗涤疼痛,迎接喜悦。


我由衷地感激能够遇见博闻强记、充满人格魅力的老师们,是他们运用历史、心理学、经济学、文学、科学和数学等知识带我领略了理想与现实世界之间的互动与平衡;是他们告诉我人生的选择远远多于走既定的道路和前人的捷径;也是他们告诉了我教学相长、亦师亦友的道理。


我也很感激能够结识众多卓越而独特的同窗们,是他们用自己独创的歌曲、诗文、图画、舞步、厨艺、精心组织的哲学讨论会、丰富多彩的体育赛事、耀眼的彩虹色平权T恤,以及批判而掷地有声的对待农民工人、残疾儿童、校园绿化以及更多话题及人群的思考和关切,重树了我对于“优秀”的定义。


同样,我也很感激那艰难又曲折的大学申请之路,因为它锻炼了我的韧性与恒心 ,唤醒了我的好奇与热情,并帮助那个简单空白的我变成了一个更加尖锐而有温度,更加会思考的真正的人。


高中三年在HFI的教育于是帮助我走近真实的自己,让我看到自己的优点与缺陷,喜好与厌恶,让我区分心系与琐碎之事。不断地接触各异的观点也让我变得更加包容和开放,让我准备好面对质疑,保持本心。


但身处在高中与大学的过渡带,我不禁开始思考在大洋彼岸的无数可能,思考作为不仅是一个中国学生,更是别国的一个少数群体中的一员的体验;以及思考教育在对个体意识的塑造外能交予我的更多的东西究竟是什么。当校园与社会的隔离墙消失后,学生便仅仅是我们作为社会人身份的一部分了。历经沧桑的人会说,步入社会意味着抹去棱角与锋芒,接受主流意识,然后在“正确的年龄做正确的事情”。但是,人生中真的有绝对的正确与错误吗?我们不断奋斗得到高等教育机会就是为了规避风险、专注眼前利益、抛弃所有的活力与想象力只求安逸与安全吗?不,因为我相信大学的教育并不是为了让我们准备好在几十年后的某一天从梦中醒来,发现自己孤身一人,只因我们年年岁岁都只为自己的利益而活。反之,我希望我们能以青年人的远大理想与刨根问底的精神为筹码,去与未知与风险博弈,同时用谦逊与理智来对待有限的人生经验带来的不足。这才是真正的大学教育即将教授我们的东西。而在启航之际,我想谈谈几点心声。


我们将要开启一段终点遥遥无期的旅程。在我们的成长过程中,或许我们会沉浸在遇见新的思想和解决个人疑虑而对平常之事的宝贵视而不见。殊不知习以为常的事情并不是平常之事。同学们,唯有分数和努力并不能帮我们赢得今天的机会。我们能坐在这里,还因为家庭的付出、父母时间与金钱的支持,以及来之不易的和平。这个世上没有本就如此的事情,优待都伴随着机会成本。所以,我们应以一颗谦敏的同理心去规避潜意识里认为“所有一切都理所应当”的心态,去珍惜我们所拥有的物与情,重视一草一木,去关怀我们身边的人们。空想伟大而行动苟且并非英雄主义。


在未来四年中,我们会独立生活,并得到更大程度的自由选择的权利。大学很少限制我们的所思所行。我们可以有无数种方式去度过自己的一天,而那些简单安逸的方式往往更加诱人。我认为大学生活是一个“试错”的过程,我们将不仅从书本和学校作业中汲取知识,我们还将在人际关系中,在实习期间,在派对上学习,在人生体验中成长。而我们所习得的教训和养成的习惯将伴随我们的一生,决定我们能走多远。所以我想说,持之以恒并谨慎自处吧。或许你会说,因为我们只活一次所以我们应该冒险寻乐,但恰恰也因为我们只有一生,过去无法重写,我们时刻都要为我们的选择买单。“你的道路,即使陌生而坎坷,也完全由你掌控“,而命运最大的奖赏将在克服质疑与失败之后降临。


作为这个世上新的成年人,我也想与各位探讨一二我们在这个时代的位置与作用。最近我读到曾经留学海外的中国学生的故事,并对比随着时代更替他们所肩负的使命的不同。回到19世纪,严复、容闳(他是耶鲁大学的第一位中国学生)为首的知识分子求学西方,并为自己的祖国带回了先进的科学知识与理论,催生出中国的第一场工业革命以对抗帝国主义的侵害。20世纪,在留学生们的领导下,大大小小的思想启蒙运动遍布大江南北,革命呼声高涨,人们纷纷迫切地呼唤着民族独立与主权完整。而进入新的纪元,随着科技的日新月异以及商业化、全球化、数字化的发展趋势,新的问题和焦点浮出水面。个人命运和世事沉浮变得愈发变化莫测。留学的目的开始变得多元,群体更加庞大。一些学者甚至已经超越了民族主义的视野励志用所学才识为全体人类做出贡献。而我们每一个人都需要在这个环境中找寻自己的使命与担当。


站在不同的文化、意识形态与传统之间,我们被赋予了多重的身份。随之而来的是欣喜,也是两难的困境。但就像《人类简史》的作者Yuval Noah Harari说的那样,这些身份的追求均有共通之处。人类的发展史是一场无止尽的接力跑,而我们每个人的一生便是其中一棒。如果我跑得快,我们便走得远。我们在一个以其有容纳大、文化源远流长而闻名的国家长大,传承着这古老文明特有的包容与适应力。所以,我们一定可以像一个优秀的21世纪公民那样,继续坚定地独立思考,接纳新知,调整航向; 关心世界发展与人类福祉,并运用所学为让世界变得更好而努力。我们有义务寻求连接、改善人与人的关系,去促进世界的和谐与包容。这是我们的身份,亦是我们的使命。


同学们,更多的挑战就在眼前,但我相信我们会以好奇与创意,同理与良知,知识与经历丰富自己,让我们的声音被听见,想法被实现。我相信在四年后,我们能够收获奉献的能力和一个更好更强大的自己。


在最后,我想再次感谢所有的家长与老师们无私的付出与智慧的指引,为我们的成就而骄傲,也在我们迷失方向时耐心地陪伴;谢谢2019届全体同学们用你们自己的毅力和思想给予我的帮助,动力与启发。我真诚的祝愿每一个人都有一个健康、快乐和有意义的未来。


请保持辉煌, 向自己致敬!恭喜大家顺利毕业!谢谢!



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