Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '99
Wear sunscreen
If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be
it. The 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 nevermind; you will not
understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have 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
bubblegum. ( ) The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that
never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm
on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing everyday that scares you.

Sing

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 the 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 in 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.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they'll be gone for
good.

Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the
people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you
should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle
because 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 have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one
might run out.

Don't 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!

Die spirituelle Suche ist eigentlich die Suche danach, sich in sich selbst zu verlieben. Die Welt ist eine Reise, auf der wir uns in andere verlieben. Spiritualität ist eine Reise, auf der wir uns in unser eigenes Selbst verlieben.

Spiritualität ist sehr selbstsüchtig: Sie ist die Suche nach dir selbst, die Suche nach dem Sinn deiner selbst.

Das ist für mich jemand, der zu leben versteht:
Wer in seiner Essenz lebt und seine Persönlichkeit benutzt, um sich in der Gesellschaft zu bewegen. Er benutzt die Persönlichkeit nur. Er ist der Meister seines eigenen Seins.

Für die Gesellschaft braucht man eine gewisse Persönlichkeit. Wenn du in der Gesellschaft nur in deiner puren Essenz lebst, machst du dir selbst und anderen Schwierigkeiten. Die Leute werden deine Essenz nicht verstehen. Deine Wahrheit könnte ihnen zu bitter aufstoßen; deine Wahrheit könnte sie zu sehr beunruhigen. Das ist unnötig. Du brauchst dich in der Gesellschaft nicht unbedingt nackt zu zeigen; du kannst etwas anziehen.

(...)

Man sollte natürlich sein, und mit natürlich meine ich, dass man in der Lage sein sollte, seine Persönlichkeit anzuziehen, wenn man sie braucht, nämlich in der Gesellschaft. Sie wirkt wie ein Schmiermittel. Sie ist hilfreich, weil es Tausende von verschiedenen Menschen gibt. Da braucht man Schmiermittel, sonst würden die Leute ständig miteinander im Clinch liegen, würden ständig aneinander geraten. Schmiermittel sind hilfreich; sie machen das Leben reibungslos.

Eine Persönlichkeit ist gut, um mit anderen zu kommunizieren, doch sie wird zum Hindernis, wenn du mit dir selbst Verbindung aufnimmst. Eine Persönlichkeit ist gut, wenn du dich auf Menschen beziehst, aber sie ist ein Hindernis, wenn du dich auf die Existenz selbst beziehst.

Stone Temple Pilots hat geschrieben:Can you feel like a child?
Can you see what I want?
I wanna run through your wicked garden
Heard that's the place to find you
But I'm alive
So alive now
I know the darkness blinds you

Can you see without eyes?
Can you speak without lies?
I wanna drink from your naked fountain
I can drown your sorrows
I'm gonna burn, burn you to life now
Out of the chains that bind you

Can you see just like a child?
Can you see just what I want?
Can I bring you back to life?
Are you scared of life?

Burn, burn, burn
Burn your wicked garden down
Burn, burn, burn
Burn your wicked garden to the ground

Can you feel pain inside?
Can you love?
Can you cry?
I wanna run through your wicked garden
Heard that's the place to find you
'Cause I'm alive
So alive now
I know the darkness blinds you

Can you see just like a child?
Can you see just what I want?
Can I bring you back to life?
Are you scared of life?

Burn, burn, burn
Burn your wicked garden down
Burn, burn, burn
Burn your wicked garden to the ground