Friday, April 1, 2011

♥ the only thing to do with good advice is pass it on.

ladies and gentlemen of the class of '99
if i could offert 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 dispence 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 looked.

you're 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 mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some
idle tuesday.

do one thing every day 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 chuldren, 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 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, polticians 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..

written by mary schmich
filmed by baz lurhmann

6 ♥ love notes.:

  1. Oh my... just found your blog and I absolutely LOVE this video and its message... I watched on 2004 and it was a great motivator for me to make positive changes in my life back then - it is great to watch it again! So thank you...

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  2. Lovely video!
    xoxo

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  3. Hi Samantha - this is such a fabulous song - just love it. It's great to see the lyrics written out too. Kx

    p.s. Sorry to be a pain but it's actually not Baz Luhrmann's work, it was written by Mary Schmich in the Chicago Tribune in 1997 and Luhrmann used it in the song in 1998, changing only the first line. There's a Wikipedia entry about the confusion:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wear_Sunscreen

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