Some thoughts on Reunion

As we get ready for our Reunion, it is a good time to reflect. As I think about it, I am very proud to be your classmate. Have I supported every decision and every statement a classmate has ever made? Of course not. Have some actions of our classmates been difficult to watch, or even worthy of condemnation? Yes. But, the sum of our experience is not to be taken from a single incident, a single statement, or a single person. Our measure as a class is and should remain the contributions we all have made, and will continue to make, for the betterment of our classmates' lives, the Yale community and the communities in which we live. When I take that measure, I see people who stand for what they believe, who live remarkable lives, and who make their world, and ours, better. Some do it in private ways – by raising amazing children, building businesses, healing the sick, advancing human knowledge and understanding and a myriad other ways you will never read about in the paper or hear about on a news show. Some live their lives more publicly, sharing their views through art, literature, film, legal activism, public service and politics. And, some have inspired others by battling difficult odds with grace and dignity. As a whole, our class is an engaged group of people from which I continually draw inspiration. So, I would ask that as you consider our class and its legacy, that you take a broad view and consider the breadth of what our classmates have accomplished and the lives they have lived.

I would also ask that as you come to Reunion you do so remembering that we cannot know the experiences our classmates have had since that Labor Day weekend in 1983 when we first met. So, please respect where people are coming from and where they've been. Take the time to listen -- to truly listen -- to each other. You need not agree with, or even like, everyone in our class. But, I would ask that you take the time to respectfully consider their point of view.

I would also ask that you take the time to enjoy the full weekend that has been planned. Some of it is serious, some of it is silly, most of it is social. Find your people. Find some new people. And, try to enjoy being together.

For each of us, Yale was a gift, the worth of which it has taken 35 years to fully appreciate. The Reunion is about being thankful for that gift, enjoying each other's company once again, and maybe, just maybe, finding a way to enrich our lives and the lives of those we love just a little bit more.