Undergraduate speaker Elijah Darden, who obtained a degree in psychological and brain sciences from Arts & Sciences, addressed the Class of 2025 at Washington University in St. Louis during the Commencement ceremony on May 12, held on Francis Olympic Field.
Below are Darden’s prepared statements to the graduates.
Good morning to my fellow graduates, families, faculty, and staff. My name is Elijah Darden, and it is both exciting and humbling to address you today during such a significant occasion. My fellow graduates, today marks the culmination of not only the recent years of our education but our entire lives leading up to this moment. We may not have been on this planet for an extensive time. Yet, as I reflect on our experiences thus far, I can’t help but envision our lives as a symphony. It resonates deeply with me—after all, I consider myself a musician at heart.
Today, I invite all of you present to indulge in my thought experiment of envisioning your life as a symphonic piece. Each movement represents a distinct chapter of your journey through the harmonious sounds of an orchestra. Every instrument symbolizes an individual or an inspiration. Each melody narrates a tale of wonder and delight; struggle and adversity; endurance and success. If our lives were comprised of these symphonic segments, what would this particular movement be? The one here at WashU that, my fellow graduates, we are now concluding. What we musicians might refer to as a coda. Perhaps it began with the brisk tempo of our fall orientation, accented by bursts of woodwinds as we found our footing on the South 40. Or, a gentle and flowing waltz, as we engaged with our communities, friendships, and academic fervors within WashU. Or maybe, a relentless and methodical march showcasing the impact we’ve made as a collective group on our campus and the broader St. Louis community.
That’s how I would initiate the composition of our movement here. But just as each listener of a symphony might interpret a piece differently, each one of you has crafted your own segment in your symphony. Over the years, I’ve composed works for small quintets as well as symphony orchestras. Through music composition, I’ve cultivated a distinctive skill: discerning order amidst the chaos. Confronting a tangled mess of dissonant and loose strings of noise, I unravel them and weave them into melody. That is what I aim to achieve today. To extract the rich complexities of our intricately connected lives and discover the music that unites us all.
What I hold dear about music and composition is the infinite variety in style, instruments, tempo, and timbre. It is challenging to draw parallels between a Beethoven symphony and a Count Basie jazz number. A Kenny Rogers classic alongside Elton John. Or Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” juxtaposed with Chappell Roan’s “Pink Pony Club.” They are so distinctly different, just like each of us. Arising from backgrounds and families, both locally and globally. We are anchored in our cultures, our lived experiences, and our viewpoints. This uniqueness is what attracted us to the diverse cultural groups, club sports, and various extracurricular activities at WashU. These groups have been vital for our spirits. Yet, we must recognize the comfort they provide while also leaving space for understanding individuals we haven’t yet engaged with. Stretching our limits and interacting with beliefs, backgrounds, and ideologies that differ from our own. Even if it entails sacrificing our comfort temporarily. Each movement in our symphony is not performed in solitude. It demands every instrument to collaborate harmoniously.
Innovative composition emerges from the intersections of musical traditions. Jazz, for example, is a fusion of music from various global diasporas, continuously influencing one another. Without jazz and country, rock would not exist. Without jazz, funk, and blues, hip-hop wouldn’t either. Without these genres and more, pop would be absent. I believe we can all concur that the world would be a much gloomier place without “Pink Pony Club.” So, persist in engaging with concepts that might seem unrelated or contradictory. Have those challenging discussions. Strive to comprehend the movements within others’ symphonies, for by grasping theirs, you will gain a deeper understanding of your own.
Numerous moments of our time here at WashU have been dedicated to enhancing our communities and the broader world. You may envision this in the grand ways many of you have contributed. Leading and participating in organizations and nonprofits that provide resources and care to our surrounding neighborhoods. Going door-to-door to disseminate information about voting. Establishing a Spanish-speaking CPR program. Investing countless hours in volunteer work at WashU and in St. Louis. However, impact can also manifest in smaller gestures. In my experience as an emergency medical technician on this campus, I have responded to well over 100 calls. In most of these instances, there has been a bystander: a concerned friend or fellow WashU community member, standing by the patient’s side. Supporting them in their moment of need. Such small acts can blossom into larger contributions as we build a nurturing foundation for a better future.
But we must also acknowledge that despite our best intentions, we have made many errors during our time here. As my father once told me, ‘Just because you mean well, doesn’t guarantee that you do well.’ In the context of our life’s symphonic movements, we will discover that we composed dissonances we didn’t foresee. We may have stumbled upon jarring syncopations. However, as long as we reflect and learn to sidestep intentional mistakes, we can continue striving to improve and move forward. Just as we, too, will soon be graduates, embarking on our future journeys.
In closing, I wish to share some thoughts on purpose. Mark Twain stated that the most essential days of your life are the day you are born and the day you discover why. While I appreciate this quote, I believe it overlooks the complexities of life. Although Mark Twain expressed through writing, I find it fitting to return to my music metaphor. The days that shape us are but stanzas inscribed in our musical composition: something that cannot be erased but is merely a segment of a greater narrative. The truths we hold about ourselves are only temporary, and the notes at the beginning of our composition influence but do not dictate how the remainder unfolds. This realization can be daunting. Your greatest victories may be followed by significant setbacks. Yet, your periods of suffering may also draw to a close, unveiling a brighter future.
At times, you may not choose the verses that comprise your song, but many days, you will. Strive to compose your own symphony, to define the movements of your life with the morals, resilience, and passion that reside within you. The times when you uplift others will be etched into your musical staff, just as the times when you may have caused others distress. Be mindful. Uphold integrity. But throughout it all, don’t forget to embrace life. Break free from the movements of your composition and allow chapters of your life to be poetic. Fill the leading lines of the paragraphs with music that accompanies your tale.
Pause and allow the moments that might be dismissed with a few notes to grow into complete stanzas. Bring it all into your conscious awareness. Now, I may not be Mark Twain, but with all this in mind, I would like to hope that he would appreciate my slight modification to his quote: that the most important days of your life are the day you are born and each day thereafter when you look around, within, and rediscover why.
Thank you, and congratulations to my fellow graduates of the WashU Class of 2025.
Read Chancellor Andrew Martin’s message to the Class of 2025.
Read graduate student speaker Kendall Burks’ address.
Read Commencement speaker Simone Biles’ remarks here.
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