I like graduation ceremonies.  It's a ancient ritual with a now-common tune:  Pomp and Circumstance.  The poor people playing the tune have to play it over and over and over as the class files in.  But it's a great tune and I hope they don't mind.

Last Friday I went to my niece's high school graduation in Los Angeles, and today was Cardozo's graduation in Avery Fisher Hall.  It's too bad that the energy of commencement speeches can't be harnessed somehow, made to do work, because both of these events featured fine speeches.  Both speakers (Jim Newton, LA Times editorial page editor; Sen. Chris Dodd in NYC) spoke plainly about the need for leadership right now in America; both spoke about the honor of a fine education; and both exhorted their listeners to avoid apathy and generally fix things.  Both had personal stories about activism that had inspired them, and both hoped to inspire us.  Both were authentic and persuasive.

But then their speeches ended, and there weren't any levers to pull or actions to take.  Both speakers waited politely until it felt like the right time to leave, and then left, whispering thanks to their decanal hosts.  These events just end.  The faculty and graduates file out to greet their families. 

I'm not saying these rituals are empty - far from it.  But if only we could bottle it:  "Essence of Commencement."

===sorry I inadvertently deleted a trackback from this fine blog. it's the spam that clouds my vision.