16 July 2018. Two days before my plane takes off to Vancouver, Canada. I’m writing a speech for the BA students, who will graduate in a few days. I will miss their graduation ceremony and my speech will only be played as an audio recording. While I write I can feel the minutes passing and time pressing. Suddenly the passage of time feels existential and when I make the audio recording my voice carries more emotion than I had intended.
My speech to the students is a speech written by Ruth Sorel in my name. Ruth Sorel is replacing me in my absence.
She ponders which advice to give to a class of students who she doesn’t know. But eventually she comes up with two recommendations:
1. Hold dear those moments when you discover something: An ability in yourself that you didn’t think you have, a tiny gap in the wooden floor that you walked on a hundred times, a miniature world in an abandoned terrarium, a faded scar on the shin of a person you love. Cherish those discoveries, as small and minuscule as they might be in the eyes of others. They are meaningful to you and they are so for a reason.
2. Attend to your fantasies and daydreams. Allow them to be with you wherever you are and wherever you go. If you feel strongly about something, take the courage to pursue it. Go for things, even if against all odds. Go for things, especially if against all odds.
and finally a third one comes to her mind:
Sleep a lot