Commencement Address
Matthew J. Terry
June 14, 2001

Board of Trustees, Faculty, Family, and Friends…

The night my Stanford acceptance came my dad began to cry...  And in his tears he told me that he had to wonder whether it takes extraordinary events to make great people, or if great people are just born great.  That was my dad’s own way of telling me just how proud he was of all that I had accomplished.  But, that got me thinking, would I have received this distinction without the unexpected events in my life?

In March of ‘99, my unexpected event came when I was diagnosed with Cancer. 

Before the diagnosis, I was such an unhappy sophomore.  I was completely self-interested, focused on getting strait A’s and other personal successes.  Ironically, I can recall a conversation with a good friend one week before I was diagnosed, when I told her that all I cared about was being a financial success.  Whether that meant halving 5 wives and no kids, I didn’t care.  Just as long as I was the guy with the lavish house and expensive sports cars.  I wanted to be famous and have all the town look up to me.  To be honest, I was 15, and I had no idea what I wanted.

After my diagnosis with Lymphoma I remained confident that cancer treatment was only going to be a small setback in my life.  I was under the assumption that six months later the chemotherapy would stop infusing, my hair would grow back, and my life would go back just as it had before I had cancer.

 At the time, I could have never imagined the effect that cancer would have on my life.  I was wrong.  I had cancer, and cancer has changed my life completely.

After less than 6 months in remission, the cancer came back.  This time, under more serious circumstances, I was to receive several months of intensive treatments and a bone marrow transplant.  At that point I left school, desperate, alone, faced with the reality of the seriousness of my illness and my own vulnerable mortality.

The emotions connected with having cancer are inevitably life altering.  My goals, deepest fears, and entire personal foundation as an individual took almost a complete turn as a result of the terrifying conditions my body had seen.  Depression, anxiety, sickness, rage, torture.  If failing a grade has changed your life, you can imagine what cancer has done to mine.

What I have seen and what I have experienced have only amplified my desire to see an end to this suffering.  Much deeper than that, it has given me direction for why I am here on Earth and what I must do with my life.

I made the decision that cancer is not a death sentence, but my wake up call.  Although I have indeed suffered, I have come to realize what is truly important in life.  Family, Friends, Community. That phat Beemer or the big mansion are no longer my goals, but more importantly that I will live to see the day that there is an end to this miserable suffering.

My hope for you, the class of 2001, is that YOU will find your own “wake up call.”  Find your own way to create social change and have an impact on the world.  I am sure that through your own hardship you have dreams of how you can make this world a happier and more comfortable place to live in.

The answer to my dad’s question is that the potential for greatness is deep down inside each and every one of us.  I just hope that it doesn’t take a tragedy like cancer for YOU realize the profound effect that you can have on the world.

Please, don’t take the life that you have been offered for granted.  Decide NOW what you feel passionate about.  Decide NOW how you want to leave your mark on the world, and most importantly, decide NOW to be grateful for your life, and never take for granted your privilege to wake up every morning and make the most of every day.

Thank You.