Singer Taylor Swift received an honorary degree from New York University Wednesday and delivered a commencement speech to the 2022 graduating class.
Swift expressed her elation in celebrating the class, but jokingly said that she was 90% sure the main reason she was there is because she has a song called “22.”
She started her speech emphasizing the importance of giving gratitude toward those who helped get them there.
“Not a single one of us here today has done it alone. We are each a patchwork quilt of those who have loved us, those who have believed in our futures, those who showed us empathy and kindness, or told us the truth even when it wasn’t easy to hear. Those who told us we could do it when there was absolutely no proof of that. Someone read stories to you and taught you to dream and offered up some moral code of right and wrong for you to try and live by,” Swift told the graduates.
Continuing the singer said, “And maybe they didn’t do it perfectly, no one ever can, maybe they aren’t with us anymore. In that case, I hope you’ll remember them today. If they are in the stadium I hope you’ll find your own way to express your gratitude for all the steps and missteps that have led us to this common destination.”
In her commencement address, Swift said that she knows words are supposed to be “her thing” but she will never be able to find the words to thank her mom, dad, and brother for the sacrifices they made “every day” so that she can go from singing in coffeehouses to standing up there, with the class, “because no words would ever be enough.”
The pop star gave the graduating class some of her “unsolicited advice” and wanted to impart whatever wisdom she might have that has helped her so far in her life.
“Life can be heavy especially if you carry it all at once. Part of growing up and moving into new chapters of your life is about catch and release. What I mean by that is knowing what things to keep and what things to release. You can’t carry all things,” she said.
God tells us in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Continuing her speech, Swift said, “Decide what is yours to hold and let the rest go. Often times the good things in your life are lighter anyway, so there’s more room for them.”