Everybody’s free (to wear sunscreen)
Ladies
and gentlemen of the class of '97 ! Wear sunscreen !
If I
could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it.
A long-term benefits of
sunscreen have been proved by scientists,
whereas the rest of
my advice has no basis more reliable than my own
meandering experience.
I will dispense this advice now.
Enjoy
the power and beauty of your youth, oh, never mind !
You
will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've
faded, but trust me, in 20 years,
you'll look back at photos of yourself
and recall in a way you can't grasp
now, how much possibility lay before
you and how fabulous you really
looked.
You
are not as fat as you imagine !
Don't
worry about the future.
Or
worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an
algebra equation by
chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life
are apt to be things that never
crossed your worried mind.
The kind that blindsides you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.
Do one
thing every day that scares you !
Saying,
don't be reckless with other people's hearts !
Don't
put up with people who are reckless with yours. Floss.
Don't
waste your time on jealousy !
Sometimes
you're ahead, sometimes you're behind.
The
race is long and in the end, it's only with yourself.
Remember
compliments you receive, forget the insults, if you succeed
in doing this, tell me how. Keep
your old love letters, throw away your
old bank statements. Stretch.
Don't
feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life.
The
most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted
to do with their lives. Some of the
most interesting 40-year-olds I know
still don't.
Get
plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when
they're gone.
Maybe
you'll marry, maybe you won't,
Maybe
you'll have children, maybe you won't.
Maybe
you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the 'Funky
Chicken'
on your 75th wedding anniversary.
Whatever
you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate
yourself either. Your
choices are half chance, so are everybody else's.
Enjoy
your body, use it every way you can, don't be afraid of it or what other people
think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.
Dance,
even if you have nowhere to do it but your own living room.
Read
the directions even if you don't follow them.
Do not
read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.
G Em C - D
Brother and sister, together we'll make it through,
G Em C - D
some day a spirit will take you and guide you there.
Am Em C - D
I know you've been hurting but I've been waiting to be there for you,
G D C - D
and I'll be there just helping you out whenever I can.
Get to
know your parents, you never know when they'll be gone
for
good. Be nice to your siblings,
they're your best link to your past
and the people most likely to stick
with you in the future.
Understand
that friends come and go, but a precious few, who should
hold on
Work
hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, for as the older
you get, the more you need the people
you knew when you were young.
Live
in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.
Live
in northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.
Travel.
Accept
certain inalienable truths :
Prices
will rise, politicians will philander, you too, will
get old.
And
when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices
were reasonable, politicians were
noble, and children respected their
elders.
Respect
your elders. Don't expect anyone else to support you.
Maybe
you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy
spouse.
But
you never know when either one might run out.
Never
mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40 it will look
85.
Be
careful whose advice you buy but be patient with those who supply it.
Advice
is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past
from the disposal, wiping it off,
painting over the ugly parts, and
recycling it for more
than it's worth.
But
trust me on the sunscreen !
G Em C - D
Brother and sister, together we'll make it through,
G Em C - D
some day a spirit will take you and guide you there.
Am
Em C - D
I know you've been hurting but I've been waiting to be there for you,
G D C - D
and I'll be there just helping you out whenever I can.
G Em C - D
+ Everybody see it, oh, yeah, yeah !
G Em C
- D
Everybody see it, oh, yeah
!
G
He want you to feel good !
(orig. = capo 1st) (“Baz” Luhrman)