奥普拉温弗瑞

奥普拉2013哈佛大学毕业典礼英语演讲稿：

Ohmygoodness!I'matHarvard!Wow!ToPresidentFaust,myfellowhonorands,Carl

thatwassobeautiful,thankyousomuch,andJamesRothenberg,StephanieWilson,

ewisGates.

Allofyoualumniwithaspecialbowtotheclassof'88,yourhundredfifteenmilliondollars.

Andtoyou,membersoftheHarvardclassof2013!Hello!

Ithankyouforallowingmetobeapartoftheconclusionofthischapterofyourlivesand

hatI'mhonoreddoesn'tevenbeginto

quantifythedepthofgratitudethatreallyaccompaniesanhonorarydoctoratefrom

manylittlegirlsfromruralMississippihavemadeitallthewayhereto

ntellyouthatIconsidertodayasIsatonthestagethismorning

gettingtearyforyouallandthentearyformylf,Iconsidertodayadefiningmilestonein

opetodayisthatIcanbeasourceofsome

inspiration.I'mgoingtoaddressmyremarkstoanybodywhohaverfeltinferiororfelt

disadvantaged,feltscrewedbylife,thisisaspeechforthequad.

dtobe

abletohaveyoulookunderyouratsandtherewouldbefreemasteranddoctor

lotof

pressureoverthepastfewweekstocomeupwithsomethingthatIcouldsharewithyou

thatyouhadn'theardbeforebecauafterallyouallwenttoHarvard,nI

realizedthatyoudon'thavetonecessarilygotoHarvardtohaveadrivenobssiveType

leImaynothavegraduatedfromhereIadmitthatmy

wmytelevisioncareerbegan

waswhenIwas16yearsoldinNashville,Tenneseandyouhadtherequirementof

weredoing

thequestionandanswerperiodbecauIknewIwasn'tgoingtowinundertheswimsuit

ngthequestionandanswerperiodthequestioncame"Why,young

lady,whatwouldyouliketobewhenyougrowup?"Andbythetimetheygottomeallthe

enBarbaraWaltersontheTodayShowthat

morningsoIanswered"liketotellotherpeople's

storiesinawaythatmakesadifferenceintheirlivesandtheworld."Andasthowords

werecomingoutofmymouthIwentwhoa!Thisisprettygood!Iwouldliketobea

asontelevisionbythetimeIwas19years

1986Ilaunchedmyowntelevisionshowwitharelentlessdeterminationto

rvousaboutthecompetitionandthenIbecamemyown

competitionraisingthebareveryyear,pushing,pushing,pushingmylfashardasI

amiliartoanybodyhere?Eventuallywedidmakeittothetopandwestayed

therefor25years.

TheOprahWinfreyShowwasnumberoneinourtimeslotfor21yearsandIhavetotell

wyearsagoIdecided

asyouwillatsomepoint,thatitwastimetorecalculate,findnewterritory,breaknew

edtheshowandlaunchedOWN,tials

earlaterafterlaunchingOWNnearlyeverymediaoutlet

taflopbutabigboldfloptheycall

illrememberthedayIopenedupUSATodayandreadtheheadline"Oprah,not

quitestandingonherOWN."Imeanreally,USAToday?Nowthat'sthenicenewspaper!It

resdandI

ightaroundthat

timethatPresidentFaustcalledandaskedmetospeakhereandIthoughtyouwantme

tospeaktoHarvardgraduates?WhatcouldIpossiblysaytoHarvardgraduates,someof

themostsuccessfulgraduatesintheworldintheverymomentwhenIhadstopped

succeeding?

sintheshoweralongtime

's

"Byandby,whenthemorningcomes."AndIstartedthinkingaboutwhenthemorning

wordscametome

"Troubledon'tlastalways"fromthathymn,"thistooshallpass."AndIthoughtasIgotout

nIdo,

I'mgoingtogotoHarvardandI'mgoingtospeakthetruthofit!SoI'mheretodaytotell

youIhaveturnedthatnetworkaround!

AnditwasallbecauIwantedtodoitbythetimeIgottospeaktoyouallsothankyou

'tknowwhatmotivationyouwereforme,thankyou.I'mevenprouderto

shareafundamentaltruththatyoumightnothavelearnedevenasgraduatesofHarvard

sorNagyaswe

werecominginthismorningsaid"y,walkdecisively."

n'tmatterhowfaryoumightri.

Atsomepointyouareboundtostumblebecauifyou'reconstantlydoingwhatwedo,

'reconstantlypushingyourlfhigher,higherthelawofaveragesnot

nyoudoI

wantyoutoknowthis,rememberthis:eisjustlife

nyou'redownthereinthehole,itlooks

nyou're

downinthehole,whenthatmomentcomes,it'sreallyokaytofeelbadforalittlewhile.

Giveyourlftimetomournwhatyouthinkyoumayhavelostbutthenhere'sthekey,

learnfromeverymistakebecaueveryexperience,encounter,andparticularlyyour

n

keytolifeistodevelopaninternalmoral

enowandforevermorewhen

youGoogleyourlfyourarchresultswillread"Harvard,2013".Andinavery

competitiveworldthatreallyisacallingcardbecauIcantellyouasonewhoemploysa

lotofpeoplewhenIe"Harvard"Isitupalittlestraighterandsay"Whereisheorshe?

Bringthemin."it'sanimpressivecallingcardthatcanleadtoevenmoreimpressive

bulletsintheyearsahead:lawyer,nator,C.E.O.,scientist,physicist,winnersofNobel

challengeoflifeIhavefoundisto

buildaresumethatdoesn'tsimplytellastoryaboutwhatyouwanttobebutit'sastory

'saresumethatdoesn'tjusttellastoryaboutwhatyouwant

that'snotjustacollectionoftitlesandpositionsbutastory

that'ewhenyouinevitablystumbleandfindyourlf

yourtruecalling?Whatisyour

dharma?Whatisyourpurpo?Formethatdiscoverycamein1994whenIintervieweda

littlegirlwhohaddecidedtocollectpocketchangeinordertohelpotherpeopleinneed.

SheraidathousanddollarsallbyherlfandIthoughtwellifthatlittle9yearoldgirl

withabucketandbigheartcoulddothatIwonderwhatIcoulddo?SoIaskedforour

viewerstotakeuptheirownchangecollectionandinonemonthjustfrompenniesand

nickelsanddimesweraidmorethanthreemilliondollarsthatweudtondone

sthebeginningofthe

AngelNetwork.

AndsowhatIdidwasIsimplyaskedourviewers"Dowhatyoucanwhereveryouare,

yourtimeoryourtalentyourmoneyifyouhaveit."

togetherwebuilt55schoolsin12differentcountriesandrestorednearly300homesthat

ngelNetworkIhavebeenonthe

airforalongtime,

helpedmetodecidethatIwasn'tgoingtojustbeonTVeverydaybutthatthegoalofmy

shows,myinterviews,mybusiness,myphilanthropyallofit,whateverventuresImight

pursuewouldbetomakeclearthatwhatunitesusisultimatelyfarmoreredeemingand

ewhathadbecomecleartomeandI

wantyoutoknowitisn'talwaysclearinthebeginningbecauasIsaidIhadbeenon

und''texpectthe

claritytocomeallatoncetoknowyourpurporightaway,butwhatbecamecleartome

wasthatIwashereonearthtoutelevisionandnotbeudbyit;toutelevisionto

AngelNetwork,itdidn'tjust

changethelivesofthowhowerehelped,butthelivesofthowhoalsodidthehelping.

Itremindedusthatnomatterwhoweareorwhatwelooklikeorwhatwemaybelieveitis

bothpossibleandmoreimportantlyitbecomespowerfultocometogetherincommon

methingontheBillMooreShowrecentlythatso

st

their7yearoldson,nthoughgunsafety

legislationtostrengthenbackgroundcheckshadjustbeenvoteddowninCongressatthe

timethattheyweredoingthisinterviewtheytalkedabouthowtheyrefudtobe

nesaidthis,shesaid"Ourheartsarebrokenbutourspiritsarenot.

I'mgoingtotellthemwhatit'sliketofindaconversationaboutchangethatislove,andI'm

goingtodothatwithoutfightingthem."AndthenherhusbandDavidaddedthis,"You

simplycannotdemonizeorvilifysomeonewhodoesn'tagreewithyou,becauthe

minuteyoudothat,

astobesomewaythatthisdarknesscanbebanished

withlight."Inourpoliticalsystemandinthemediaweoftenethereflectionofacountry

thatispolarized,,Iknowyouknowthe

nowthatwearebetterthanthecynicismandthepessimismthatis

hannel,

rstandthatthevastmajorityofpeopleinthiscountrybelievein

strongerbackgroundchecksbecautheyrealizethatwecanupholdtheSecond

n't

havetobeincompatible.

AndweunderstandthatmostAmericansbelieveinaclearpathtocitizenshipforthe

12,000,000undocumentedimmigrantswhoresideinthiscountrybecauit'spossibleto

bothenforceourlawsandatthesametimeembracethewordsontheStatueofLiberty

oboth.

repeoplefrom

bothpartiesandnopartybelievethatindigentmothersandfamiliesshouldhaveaccessto

healthyfoodandaroofovertheirheadsandastrongpubliceducationbecauherein

theric

questioniswhatarewegoingtodoaboutit?Reallywhatareyougoingtodoaboutit?

oudon'oucareabouttheissues

andmaybethereareotherchallengesthatyou,classof2013,arepassionateabout.

ouwantto

ntisyourgenerationischargedwiththis

taskofbreakingthroughwhatthebodypolitichasthusfarmadeimpervioustochange.

Eachofyouhasbeenblesdwiththinormousopportunityofattendingthisprestigious

haveachancetobetteryourlife,thelivesofyourneighborsandalsothe

'swhenyour

geloualwayssays"Whenyoulearn,uget,

friendsiswhatgivesyourstorypurpoandmeaning."Soyouallhavethe

powerinyourownwaytodevelopyourownAngelNetworkandindoingsoyourclasswill

bearmedwithmoretoolsofinfluenceandempowermentthananyothergenerationin

esdwithaplatformthatatitsheightreached

nearly20,000,einaworldofTwitterandFacebookand

YouTubeandTumbler,'rethegenerationthat

rejectedpredictionsaboutyourdetachmentandyourdingagementbyshowingupto

nthepunditssaidtheysaidtheytalkedabout

you,theysaidyou'dbetoodisappointed,you'dbetoodejectedtorepeatthatsamekindof

turnoutin2012electionandyouprovedthemwrongbyshowingupinevengreater

'swhoyouare.

Thi

yousay"B.S."atHarvard?Thespinandphoninessandartificialnastinessthatsaturates

ouallunderstandbetterthanmostthatreal

progressrequiresauthentic-anauthenticwayofbeing,honesty,andaboveallempathy.I

havetosaythatthesinglemostimportantlessonIlearnedin25yearstalkingeverysingle

usItellyouwedon'want,thecommondenominatorthatI

foundineverysingleinterview,tobeunderstood.I

havedoneover35,000interviewsinmycareerandassoonasthatcamerashutsoff

everyonealwaysturnstomeandinevitablyintheirownwayasksthisquestion"Wasthat

okay?"IhearditfromPresidentBush,IhearditfromPresidentObama.I'vehearditfrom

heroesandfromhouwives.I'

ishesperforming,handsmethe

microphoneandsays"Wasthatokay?"Friendsandfamily,yours,enemies,strangersin

everyargumentineveryencounter,everyexchangeIwilltellyoutheyallwanttoknow

onething:wasthatokay?Didyouhearme?Doyoueme?DidwhatIsaymean

anythingtoyou?AndeventhoughthisisacollegewhereFacebookwasbornmyhopeis

thatyouwouldtrytogooutandhavemoreface-to-faceconversationswithpeopleyou

maydisagreewith.

Thatyou'llhavethecouragetolookthemintheeyeandheartheirpointofviewandhelp

makesurethatthespeedanddistanceandanonymityofourworlddoesn'tcauusto

loourabilitytostandinsomebodyel'sshoesandrecognizeallthatweshareasa

imperativeforyouasanindividualandforoursuccessasanation."There

hastobesomewaythatthisdarknesscanbebanishedwithlight,"saysthemanwho

heryoucallit

soulorspiritorhigherlf,intelligence,thereisIknowthis,thereisalightinsideeachof

younggirl

fromruralMississippiIlearnedlongagothatbeingmylfwasmucheasierthan

ghwhenIfirststartedbecauIhadBarbarain

myheadIwouldtrytositlikeBarbara,talklikeBarbara,movelikeBarbaraandthenone

nightIwasonthenewsreadingthenewsandIcalledCanadaCan-a-da,andthatwasthe

'tstoplaughingandmyreal

personalitycamethroughandIfiguredoutohgee,IcanbeamuchbetterOprahthanI

couldbeapretendBarbara.

Iknowthatyouallmighthavealittleanxietynowandhesitationaboutleavingthecomfort

atterwhatchallenges

ortbacksordisappointmentsyoumayencounteralongthewayyouwillfindtrue

successandhappinessifyouhaveonlyonegoal,therereallyisonlyoneandthatisthis:

ttto

maxoutyourhumanitybyusingyourenergytoliftyourlfup,yourfamilyandthepeople

"Don'taskyourlfwhat

rlfwhatmakesyoucomealiveandthengodothatbecau

whattheworldneedsispeoplewhohavecomealive."Theworldneeds-

chaelwasjust8yearsold

Michaelnearlydiedfromabacterialinfectionthatcosthimbothofhishandsandbothof

ninstantthisvibrantlittleboybecameaquadrupleamputeeandhislife

osingwhoheoncewasMichaeldiscoveredwhohewanted

dtositinthatwheelchairalldayandfeelsorryforhimlfsowith

edhismiddleschool

lacrosteamandlastmonthwhenhelearnedthatsomanyvictimsoftheBoston

MarathonbombingwouldbecomenewamputeesMichaeldecidedtobanishthat

ai

1,000,imeHarrisrunsthe2014BostonMarathon.

Morethan1,000milesawayfromherethetwoyoungbrothersarebringingpeople

togethertosupportthisBostoncommunitythewaytheircommunitycametogetherto

nthis13yearoldmanwasaskedabouthisfellowamputeeshe

saidthis"'relosingsomethingtheywillnevergetbackand

that'y'stdon'tknowthatyet."Wemightnot

tnotalwayseit,orhearitonthenewsorevenfeelitinour

dailylivesbutIhavefaiththatnomatterwhatclassof2013youwillbeokayandyouwill

aithbecauofthat9yearoldgirlwhowentout

aithbecauofDavidandFrancineWheeler,Ihave

faithbecauofMichaelandHarrisStolzenbergandIhavefaithbecauofyou,the

hemKadijaWilliamswhocametoHarvard

hadattended12schoolsin12yearslivingoutofgarbagebags

amongstpimpsandprostitutesanddrugdealers,homeless,goingintodepartmentstores,

Wal-Martinthemorningtobatheherlfsothatshewouldn'tsmellinfrontofher

classmatesandtodayshegraduatesasamemberoftheHarvardclassof2013.

Fromtimetotimeyoumaystumblefall,youwillforsurecountinthisnodoubt,youwill

havequestionsandyouwillhavedoubtsaboutyourpathbutIknowthis,ifyou'rewillingto

yourlf,tofindoutwhat

lbehappy,youwillbe

successful,tulationsclassof2013,

congratulationstoyourfamilyandfriends,t

okay?