Hold firm to goodness, GG advises

I acknowledge the traditional keepers of this magnificent land, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nations. And the debt of gratitude I owe to wise Indigenous women who have taught me across my life what it means to be an Elder.

My friends, thank you for your kind welcome. I want you to know how thrilled and delighted I am to be with you on this day. A very special one in your lives.  One you will always remember with affection. A joyous celebration marking the completion of a rigorous course of study, of intellectual endeavour, of pushing yourself with heart and nerve and sinew. An achievement to savour. One that will open adventures and experiences that you couldn’t begin to imagine now. Oh, the disasters, the delights, the disappointments, the glittering prizes, the transformations.

Today signifies a milestone in that most important journey of all, to the centre of oneself, understanding, knowing. I have been thinking very deeply about you, about your futures. I care about them very much, about what I want for you, what I expect of you, and for you. And as you might suspect, a grandmother of three-score-years-and-ten simply cannot resist giving advice and speaking from her heart on an occasion like this one.

But before I do that I want to thank the University for making this a most memorable day for me too. I am honoured by your gesture that recognises my own journey, begun as a girl from a little country town in central western Queensland, inspired by noble ideals of justice, about fairness, about making the world a better place. Oh, youth, the strength of it, the faith of it, the imagination of it.

I have appreciated and enjoyed many visits to this much loved institution of learning, teaching, research and scholarship. Always impressed by your elegant classic architecture, and your techno-savvy design statements of more recent years. There is something exceptional about this place that appeals to me. It’s a feeling that draws me in as I walk through: halls, crannies, pathways winding in and out, lawns under trees, spaces for those conversations, testing ideas and arguments — the essence of our halcyon days.

I respect your proud history, the way you value academic traditions that really matter, and at the same time meet the challenges of being thoroughly contemporary in our modern society, as you constantly, energetically, stretch out for excellence.

We are elated by the results of your striving — the latest, your place in the top 40 global list, ranking higher education prestige. It cements your status as the nation’s top university when it comes to reputation. That’s what I call stardom. That’s where we want our country to score; with our intellects, problem-solving, innovation, creativity, exploration, ideas, imagination, expanding minds, nurturing brain power, encouraging a sense of wonder. 

We watch what you are doing.

The development of the Melbourne curriculum has attracted enormous attention, indeed close scrutiny. The way a bold radical new direction does – the way visionary, imaginative, influential leadership does. Leadership that has a spirit and a philosophy. Shining through Glyn Davis’s way of leading is his sense of civic responsibility, his public-minded ideas about education, about building future leaders, about using knowledge for community and public benefit. I have observed his commitment to the ethos of public service throughout his distinguished career.

Graduands, here you are, scholars with academic excellence, knowledge across disciplines, community leadership skills. Scholars who are attuned to cultural diversity, active global citizens. As I look into your faces I am exhilarated by the possibilities that lie ahead of you. Your fields of study: education, law, commerce, business, are of enormous import to our country, to ensuring good futures for our citizens, recognising the dignity and worth of each and every one. They offer enriching personal and professional opportunities that my generation could only have dreamt about. Be open to them. Grasp them in your hands. Ask yourself “If not, why not?”. Be bold, be bold, be bold.

I want you to take good care of yourselves. Leave time for quietness, for true relaxation, for reflection, for the lovely things in life — poetry, music, romance, art, theatre; for those conversations, energies, enthusiasms, worthy causes, that develop and strengthen the inner resources we all need to draw on, especially in the dry gullies – the tough times. The stuff we need to help us face adjustments with courage, and triumphs with calmness and grace. 

Graduands, I wish you the best of everything: good health, enduring friendships and love. I wish you exciting lives – with balance and promise – that you will stand your ground, and when necessary stand conventional wisdom on its head.

Socrates asked the fundamental question: “How should one live?” He said this:

Manage well the circumstances of the day.
Be decent and honourable in all your dealings with others.
Bear easily and good naturedly what may be offensive in others – being as agreeable and reasonable as is humanly possible.
Do not be spoiled by your successes.
Do not desert your true selves.
Hold firm to goodness.