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Matteo Pistono's 2012 Commencement Address at Casper College

It was a great honor to address the 2012 graduating class of Casper College last Friday. It was especially gratifying to see some of my own professors in the faculty sections as I gave the address. I will paste my commencement speech below and when the college uploads the video, I'll post it here as well.

This year's graduates, who include 16 international students, come from 21 states and 10 foreign countries, with all 23 Wyoming counties represented. A total of 679 students graduated during the 2011-2012 academic year.


Casper College Commencement Speech by Matteo Pistono
May 11, 2012

Thank you very much, President Nolte, for that generous introduction.

Distinguished guests, parents, former professors of mine, friends and fellow Wyomingites, and most of all graduates, I am honored to be with you tonight to give the commencement speech for the graduating class of 2012.

Let me begin by recognizing the effort and time that all of the graduates have given during your time at Casper College. It has not always been easy, comfortable, or convenient. You have overcome many kinds of obstacles and prevailed. It is commendable and we congratulate you.

It is wonderful for me to be back in Casper College. I am pleased that my wife, Monica could return with me to Wyoming on this occasion. And my father also made the drive over tonight.

When I was 16 years old, during my junior year of high school in Lander, I made the most significant decision of my life…I left my comfort zone. I told my parents I wanted to go to Italy on a student exchange program for a year to finish high school. While my parents were hesitant and a bit scared, they supported the youthful spirit that wanted to see the world.

I arrived in Italy without family, without a friend, without a map, and most significantly, without a language. Nobody in the host family with whom I lived, or the school where I was enrolled, could speak English. And I did not speak Italian. It was sink or swim. And while I studied hard to speak the language quickly, I learned one of the most important lessons in my life. LISTEN.

Take time to Listen.

Take time to really listen to others, and take time to listen to yourself.

In our world today where our hands and eyes are constantly inundated and busy with email, text messages, and with the echo chamber of talk radio and TV, it is difficult to even find the time to listen.

So, seek out that time to give yourself the opportunity for authentic communication with others. Sit with your friends and family and deeply listen.

And perhaps more important, slow down to give yourself a chance to listen to your inner voice. Try turning off the television; put away our earphones; ditch the iphone and blackberry—and, return to the present moment. You may very well be startled and amazed at the wisdom that will emerge from your quiet mind.

When I went to Italy, away from everything that I was accustomed to, I encountered vastly different points of view on life and politics. The experience broadened my mind and allowed me to consider others’ opinions. I began to appreciate diverse opinions, a diversity of political views…even if I did not see eye to eye with them. Importantly, this taught me to loosen my tight grip on what I thought was “the right way.”

I believe we must always remain open to learn from others—even those with whom we might disagree.

The paralysis in our political system today in the US has its roots in both the liberal left and conservative rights’ inability or unwillingness to listen to those who are in disagreement. It is only through dialogue—not authoritative monologues—where we in Wyoming, in the United States, and around the world—including in Afghanistan, Kenya, Australia and those other nations represented by graduates tonight—will sort out our problems. Working together is the only way. Please foster meaningful dialogues in your family, community, and in the political discourse.

So, when I came back to Wyoming after Italy, I wanted to continue to study Italian. And, there was only one place in Wyoming that offered classes in Italian language…here at Casper College. So I enrolled and began my two years at the college.

That first semester I learned an important lesson, which was this;
Failure isn’t always bad.

This lesson came in my English composition class, when our first essay assignment was graded and returned to us.

I received an F on the assignment. Yes, Mrs. Larson gave me an “F”. Failed!

I had never received an “F” in my life. Certainly Mrs. Larson must have gotten something wrong. She must not have meant to give ME an F! After all, even then I was an aspiring author.

What was scrawled in red ink on the paper next to the F, was “Too Much Deadwood.” I had spent enough time fly-fishing on the Green and Platte to know exactly what old, rotten, floating deadwood looks like.

But what did deadwood have to do with my writing?

For that English assignment, as in life, Mrs. Larson taught me the need to cut through, toss out, what is meaningless.

I want to encourage you all at this time in your life, with your new education, to take a fresh look at your life and cut through the deadwood, cut through what is not giving real meaning to your life but rather obstructs and weighs you down. Get rid of it, lighten your load. Move into this next phase of your life with the clarity to see what is essential, and what is not.

I now thank my teacher for the F on that essay. She taught me a great lesson. Get rid of the meaningless.

After I left Casper College, I went to the University of Wyoming and later to London, England to complete my graduate degree in Buddhist philosophy. After graduate school, I worked with the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, and lived and traveled in India, Nepal, China and Tibet for the better part of a decade. I greatly appreciate the formal education I received at the various institutions where I studied, and certainly encourage you all to seek higher education.

In my last twenty years of work and travel, I have had the fortune to meet great spiritual leaders and wise scholars, and celebrities and some of the world’s most powerful politicians. Yet, I have to admit that what I have learned outside the classroom, far from the halls of power, is where I have discovered the real-world wisdom that I try to live my life by.

So please forgive me tonight for not quoting great poets and presidents, or Jesus or the Buddha, or from Saint Theresa, Gandhi, or the Dalai Lama.

Rather, tonight, I would like to offer you as my gift on your graduation a few gems of wisdom I have received from hermits in the Himalayas, from tough Alaskan seamen, from scruffy bearded monks on lonely pilgrimage routes and indeed from the my forefathers here in Wyoming.

Do not be defined by what others tell you.

Right now, you have ideas, dreams, and aspirations. I say to you graduates tonight, WAKE UP! Live your dreams—don’t let others place any limitations on you at all. You deserve to give your dreams a chance. Especially you young women out there—be bold and push your limits, and don’t live someone else’s life.

I was once told by an elderly man in Kathmandu, "There is one thing you should be very afraid of... that is... leading a mediocre life.”

What makes life mediocre? That is for each of us to decide.

But I challenge you not to be afraid of questioning conventional wisdom and rethinking old dogmas that can make your life mediocre. Feel free to have a complete lack of regard for all the traditional markers of prestige and societal status. Make a commitment of doing what is meaningful to you, what helps others, and what makes a difference in this world.

Take responsibility for that postive change you want to see in the world.

Your willingness to follow your highest aspiration will take courage. Summon that courage, and with conviction, move forward.

Yet, in life we know that there will be disappointments. You won’t be treated as you always want to be. It will be a challenging road ahead. You will fail at some point. You will lose out. It is inevitable. But in those failures is where you will gain strength. You will have to pick yourself up by your bootstraps and get back in the saddle.

In other words, when the going gets rough, you need to take part in our own rescue. When you take part in your own rescue, you can be assured that you will find the help and love of others who will be there for you.

And the flip side of this proposition it this: when you see that friend, that relative, even that stranger who needs help, reach out to do your part to help the situation, and do the right thing.

This leads me to my last point this evening.

Memento Mori—remember your mortality. Remember, you will die.

This is not a morbid thought, but quite the contrary…it is the only thing we can be absolutely certain of in this life. It is the reality which we have with us every day.

To reflect upon and remember our mortality is perhaps the most rare of gems I have been given. Because it is in knowing how little time we are here that we will clearly see how to live life to its’ fullest.

It is in knowing how fragile and brief this life is that our priorities are quickly sorted and decisions made clear.

Remembering death is the great prioritizer.

And when you have to leave this earth, you will take nothing—no money, no fame—nothing at all, with you—except, that which you have given. It is true, that it is in giving that we receive. In doing so, you will have a heart that is full of loyalty to your highest aspirations, to the sacrifices you have endured, and the courage for what you lived for.

So remember,
• Take time to listen, even to those with whom you disagree.
• Cut the deadwood.
• Do not be defined by what others tell you.
• Wake Up and live your dreams.
• And remember how short of time we have on this earth.

I congratulate you again on your achievement, go have fun tonight, and I wish you every success in the future. Thank you.

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