海軍上將麥瑞文在德州大學(xué)奧斯汀分校2019年畢業(yè)典禮英語(yǔ)演講稿-演講稿

/17海軍上將麥瑞文在德州大學(xué)奧斯汀分校1年9畢業(yè)典禮英語(yǔ)演講稿identPoweovotFenveeanembefacultfamilandfriendsandostitantltheclaefoiedthatwathecocoongrateenalmolationsonyot7yeartsothedaehradthemethaitm'psoachiethatentaduatedflotofthingoutthatdatatnotgettingcotofallthethingencemesntpeakewraeranythingtheSo???acknowledgingthatencementeechhoheUniveitihnegadachefhadaseomaioembeyrthewaionedintheemembethateveningandIceaidfact-iforableloganican'tttyhenightgirlfriendanIdremethatdadon'thavetainlydon'takethiwillatleastthatstartsherechangestheworldwhoacluewhtomakeIhavetoadmit-Ikindalikeit."Whatstartsherechangestheworld."Tonighttherearealmost8,000studentsgraduatingfromUT.Thatgreatparagonofanalyticalrigor,Ask.ComsaysthattheaverageAmericanwillmeet10,000peopleintheirlifetime.That'salotoffolks.But,ifeveryoneofyouchangedthelivesofjusttenpeople-andeachoneofthosefolkschangedthelivesofanothertenpeople-justten-theninfivegenerations-125years-theclassof2019willhavechangedthelivesof800millionpeople.800millionpeople-thinkofit-overtwicethepopulationoftheUnitedStates.Goonemoregenerationandyoucanchangetheentirepopulationoftheworld-8billionpeople.Ifyouthinkit'shardtochangethelivesoftenpeople-changetheirlivesforever-you'rewrong.IsawithappeneverydayinIraqandAfghanistan.AyoungArmyofficermakesadecisiontogoleftinsteadofrightdownaroadinBaghdadandthetensoldiersinhissquadaresavedfromclose-inambush.InKandaharprovince,Afghanistan,anon-commissionedofficerfromtheFemaleEngagementTeamsensessomethingisn'trightanddirectstheinfantryplatoonawaromaoundsavingthelivesofadozensoldiers.But,ifyouthinkaboutit,notonlywerethesesoldierssavedbythedecisionsofoneperson,buttheirchildrenyetunborn-werealsosaved.Andtheirchildren'schildren-weresaved.Generationsweresavedbyonedecision-byoneperson.Butchangingtheworldcanhappenanywhereandanyonecandoit.So,whatstartsherecanindeedchangetheworld,butthequestionis???whatwilltheworldlooklikeaterouhanetWell,Iamconfidentthatitwilllookmuch,muchbetterbutifyouwillhumorthisoldsailorforjustamoment,Ihaveafewsuggestionsthatmayhelpyouonyourwaytoabetteraworld.AndwhiletheselessonswerelearnedduringmytimeinthemilitaryI,canassureyouthatitmattersnotwhetheryoueverservedadayinuniform.Itmattersnotyourgender,yourethnicorreligiousbackground,yourorientation,oryoursocialstatus.Ourstruggleisnthisworldaresimilarandthelessonstoovercomethosestrugglesandtomoveforward-changingourselvesandtheworldaroundus-willapplyequallytoall.IhavebeenaNavySEALfor36years.ButitallbeganwhenIleftUTforBasicSEALtraininginCoronado,California.BasicSEALtrainingissixmonthsoflongtorturousrunsinthesoftsand,midnightswimsinthecoldwateroffSanDiego,obstaclescourses,unendingcalisthenics,dayswithoutsleepandalwaysbeingcold,wetandmiserable.ItissixmonthsofbeingconstantlyharassedbyprofessionallytrainedwarriorswhoseektofindtheweakofmindandbodyandeliminatethemfromeverbecomingaNavySEAL.But,thetrainingalsoseekstofindthosestudentswhocanleadinanenvironmentofconstantstress,chaos,failureandhardships.TomebasicSEALtrainingwasalifetimeofchallengescrammedintosixmonths.So,herearethetenlesson'sIlearnedfrombasicSEALtrainingthathopefullywillbeofvaluetoyouasyoumoveforwardinlife.EverymorninginbasicSEALtraining,myinstructors,whoatthetimewereallVietnamveterans,wouldshowupinmybarracksroomandthefirstthingtheywouldinspectwasyourbed.Ifyoudiditright,thecornerswouldbesquare,thecoverspulledtight,thepillowcenteredjustundertheheadboardandtheextrablanketfoldedneatlyatthefootoftherack-rack-that'sNavytalkforbed.Itwasasimpletask-mundaneatbest.Buteverymorningwewererequiredtomakeourbedtoperfection.Itseemedalittleridiculousatthetime,particularlyinlightofthefactthatwereaspiringtoberealwarriors,toughbattlehardenedSEALs-butthewisdomofthissimpleacthasbeenproventomemanytimesover.Ifyoumakeyourbedeverymorningyouwillhaveaccomplishedthefirsttaskoftheday.Itwillgiveyouasmallsenseofprideanditwillencourageyoutodoanothertaskandanotherandanother.Bytheendoftheday,thatonetaskcompletedwillhaveturnedintomanytaskscompleted.Makingyourbedwillalsoreinforcethefactthatlittlethingsinlifematter.Ifyoucan'tdothelittlethingsright,youwillneverdothebigthingsright.And,ifbychanceyouhaveamiserableday,youwillcomehometoabedthatismade-thatyoumade-andamadebedgivesyouencouragementthattomorrowwillbebetter.Ifyouwanttochangetheworld,startoffbymakingyourbed.DuringSEALtrainingthestudentsarebrokendownintoboatcrews.Eachcrewissevenstudents-threeoneachsideofasmallrubberboatandonecoxswaintohelpguidethedingy.Everydayyourboatcrewformsuponthebeachandisinstructedtogetthroughthesurfzoneandpaddleseveralmilesdownthecoast.Inthewinter,thesurfoffSanDiegocangettobe8to10feethighanditisexceedinglydifficulttopaddlethroughtheplungingsurfunlesseveryonedigsin.Everypaddlemustbesynchronizedtothestrokecountofthecoxswain.Everyonemustexertequaleffortortheboatwillturnagainstthewaveandbeunceremoniouslytossedbackonthebeach.Fortheboattomakeittoitsdestination,everyonemustpaddle.Youcan'tchangetheworldalone-youwillneedsomehelp-andtotrulygetfromyourstartingpointtoyourdestinationtakesfriends,colleagues,thegoodwillofstrangersandastrongcoxswaintoguidethem.Ifyouwanttochangetheworld,findsomeonetohelpyoupaddle.OverafewweeksofdifficulttrainingmySEALclasswhichstartedwith150menwasdowntojust35.Therewerenowsixboatcrewsofsevenmeneach.Iwasintheboatwiththetallguys,butthebestboatcrewwehadwasmadeupofthethelittleguys-themunchkincrewwecalledthem-noonewasoverabout5-footfive.ThemunchkinboatcrewhadoneAmericanIndian,oneAfricanAmerican,onePolishAmerican,oneGreekAmerican,oneItalianAmerican,andtwotoughkidsfromthemid-west.Theyoutpaddled,out-ran,andoutswamalltheotherboatcrews.Thebigmenintheotherboatcrewswouldalwaysmakegoodnaturedfunofthetinylittleflippersthemunchkinsputontheirtinylittlefeetpriortoeveryswim.Butsomehowtheselittleguys,fromeverycorneroftheNationandtheworld,alwayshadthelastlaugh-swimmingfasterthaneveryoneandreachingtheshorelongbeforetherestofus.SEALtrainingwasagreatequalizer.Nothingmatteredbutyourwilltosucceed.Notyourcolor,notyourethnicbackground,notyoureducationandnotyoursocialstatus.Ifyouwanttochangetheworld,measureapersonbythesizeoftheirheart,notthesizeoftheirflippers.Severaltimesaweek,theinstructorswouldlineuptheclassanddoauniforminspection.Itwasexceptionallythorough.Yourhathadtobeperfectlystarched,youruniformimmaculatelypressedandyourbeltbuckleshinyandvoidofanysmudges.Butitseemedthatnomatterhowmucheffortyouputintostarchingyourhat,orpressingyouruniformorpolishingyourbeltbuckle--itjustwasn'tgoodenough.Theinstructorswouldfine"something"wrong.Forfailingtheuniforminspection,thestudenthadtorun,fullyclothedintothesurfzoneandthen,wetfromheadtotoe,rollaroundonthebeachuntileverypartofyourbodywascoveredwithsand.Theeffectwasknownasa"sugarcookie."Youstayedinthatuniformtherestoftheday-cold,wetandsandy.Thereweremanyastudentwhojustcouldn'tacceptthefactthatalltheireffortwasinvain.Thatnomatterhowhardtheytriedtogettheuniformright-itwasunappreciated.Thosestudentsdidn'tmakeitthroughtraining.Thosestudentsdidn'tunderstandthepurposeofthedrill.Youwerenevergoingtosucceed.Youwerenevergoingtohaveaperfectuniform.Sometimesnomatterhowwellyouprepareorhowwellyouperformyoustillendupasasugarcookie.It'sjustthewaylifeissometimes.Ifyouwanttochangetheworldgetoverbeingasugarcookieandkeepmovingforward.Everydayduringtrainingyouwerechallengedwithmultiplephysicalevents-longruns,longswims,obstaclecourses,hoursofcalisthenics-somethingdesignedtotestyourmettle.Everyeventhadstandards-timesyouhadtomeet.Ifyoufailedtomeetthosestandardsyournamewaspostedonalistandattheendofthedaythoseonthelistwereinvitedto-a〃?〃circus.Acircuswastwohoursofadditionalcalisthenics-designedtowearyoudown,tobreakyourspirit,toforceyoutoquit.Noonewantedacircus.Acircusmeantthatforthatdayyoudidn'tmeasureup.Acircusmeantmorefatigue-andmorefatiguemeantthatthefollowingdaywouldbemoredifficult-andmorecircuseswerelikely.ButatsometimeduringSEALtraining,everyone-everyone-madethecircuslist.Butaninterestingthinghappenedtothosewhowereconstantlyonthelist.Overtimethosestudents--whodidtwohoursofextracalisthenics-gotstrongerandstronger.Thepainofthecircusesbuiltinnerstrength-builtphysicalresiliency.Lifeisfilledwithcircuses.Youwillfail.Youwilllikelyfailoften.Itwillbepainful.Itwillbediscouraging.Attimesitwilltestyoutoyourverycore.Butifyouwanttochangetheworld,don'tbeafraidofthecircuses.Atleasttwiceaweek,thetraineeswererequiredtoruntheobstaclecourse.Theobstaclecoursecontained25obstaclesincludinga10-foothighwall,a30-footcargonet,andabarbedwirecrawltonameafew.Butthemostchallengingobstaclewastheslideforlife.Ithadathreelevel30foottoweratoneendandaoneleveltowerattheother.Inbetweenwasa200-footlongrope.Youhadtoclimbthethreetieredtowerandonceatthetop,yougrabbedtherope,swungunderneaththeropeandpulledyourselfhandoverhanduntilyougottotheotherend.Therecordfortheobstaclecoursehadstoodforyearswhenmyclassbegantrainingin1977.Therecordseemedunbeatable,untiloneday,astudentdecidedtogodowntheslideforlife-headfirst.Insteadofswinginghisbodyunderneaththeropeandinchinghiswaydown,hebravelymountedtheTOPoftheropeandthrusthimselfforward.Itwasadangerousmove-seeminglyfoolish,andfraughtwithrisk.Failurecouldmeaninjuryandbeingdroppedfromthetraining.Withouthesitation-thestudentsliddowntherope-perilouslyfast,insteadofseveralminutes,itonlytookhimhalfthattimeandbytheendofthecoursehehadbrokentherecord.Ifyouwanttochangetheworldsometimesyouhavetoslidedowntheobstacleheadfirst.Duringthelandwarfarephaseoftraining,thestudentsareflownouttoSanClementeIslandwhichliesoffthecoastofSanDiego.ThewatersoffSanClementeareabreedinggroundforthegreatwhitesharks.TopassSEALtrainingthereareaseriesoflongswimsthatmustbecompleted.One-isthenightswim.BeforetheswimtheinstructorsjoyfullybriefthetraineesonallthespeciesofsharksthatinhabitthewatersoffSanClemente.Theyassureyou,however,thatnostudenthaseverbeeneatenbyashark-atleastnotrecently.But,youarealsotaughtthatifasharkbeginstocircleyourposition-standyourground.Donotswimaway.Donotactafraid.Andiftheshark,hungryforamidnightsnack,dartstowardsyou-thensummonsupallyourstrengthandpunchhiminthesnoutandhewillturnandswimaway.Therearealotofsharksintheworld.Ifyouhopetocompletetheswimyouwillhavetodealwiththem.So,Ifyouwanttochangetheworld,don'tbackdownfromthesharks.AsNavySEALsoneofourjobsistoconductunderwaterattacksagainstenemyshipping.Wepracticedthistechniqueextensivelyduringbasictraining.TheshipattackmissioniswhereapairofSEALdiversisdroppedoffoutsideanenemyharborandthenswimswellovertwomiles-underwater-usingnothingbutadepthgaugeandacompasstogettotheirtarget.Duringtheentireswim,evenwellbelowthesurfacethereissomelightthatcomesthrough.Itiscomfortingtoknowthatthereisopenwateraboveyou.Butasyouapproachtheship,whichistiedtoapier,thelightbeginstofade.Thesteelstructureoftheshipblocksthemoonlight-itblocksthesurroundingstreetlamps-itblocksallambientlight.Tobesuccessfulinyourmission,youhavetoswimundertheshipandfindthekeel-thecenterlineandthedeepestpartoftheship.Thisisyourobjective.Butthekeelisalsothedarkestpartoftheship-whereyoucannotseeyourhandinfrontofyourface,wherethenoisefromtheship'smachineryisdeafeningandwhereitiseasytogetdisorientedandfail.EverySEALknowsthatunderthekeel,atthedarkestmomentofthemission-isthetimewhenyoumustbecalm,composed-whenallyourtacticalskills,yourphysicalpowerandallyourinnerstrengthmustbebroughttobear.Ifyouwanttochangetheworld,youmustbeyourverybestinthedarkestmoment.Theninthweekoftrainingisreferredtoas"HellWeek."Itissixdaysofnosleep,constantphysicalandmentalharassmentand-onespecialdayattheMudFlats-theMudFlatsareareabetweenSanDiegoandTijuanawherethewaterrunsoffandcreatestheTijuanaslue's-aswampypatchofterrainwherethemudwillengulfyou.ItisonWednesdayofHellWeekthatyoupaddledowntothemudflatsandspendthenext15hourstryingtosurvivethefreezingcoldmud,thehowlingwindandtheincessantpressuretoquitfromtheinstructors.AsthesunbegantosetthatWednesdayevening,mytrainingclass,havingcommittedsome"egregiousinfractionoftherules"wasorderedintothemud.Themudconsumedeachmantilltherewasnothingvisiblebutourheads.Theinstructorstolduswecouldleavethemudifonlyfivemenwouldquit-justfivemenandwecouldgetoutoftheoppressivecold.Lookingaroundthemudflatitwasapparentthatsomestudentswereabouttogiveup.Itwasstillovereighthourstillthesuncameup-eightmorehoursofbonechillingcold.Thechatteringteethandshiveringmoansofthetraineesweresolouditwashardtohearanythingandthen,onevoicebegantoechothroughthenight-onevoiceraisedinsong.Thesongwasterriblyoutoftune,butsungwithgreatenthusiasm.Onevoicebecametwoandtwobecamethreeandbeforelongeveryoneintheclasswassinging.Weknewthatifonemancouldriseabovethemiserythenotherscouldaswell.Theinstructorsthreateneduswithmoretimeinthemudifwekeptupthesinging-butthesingingpersisted.Andsomehow-themudseemedalittlewarmer,thewindalittletamerandthedawnnot