May 18, 2025: Commencement 2025, Class Response by Gabby Diaz ’25

Bienvenidos, and a warm welcome to my fellow classmates, faculty, staff, alumni and families to our 2025 Commencement ceremony.

As we sit minutes before entering a new chapter of our lives, I'm sure many of us are eager for what comes next. But amidst this desire to quickly chase after our dreams, I will ask you all to pause, to breathe, and to revel in this very moment.

Even in the ruralness of Bucknell, we've gotten to experience the world — exploring different perspectives in our classes, learning about the lived experiences of our classmates, and traveling across the globe to countries like France, Japan, Ghana, Puerto Rico and Antigua. It was actually only a few weeks ago on a study abroad trip to Cuba, where someone whom I consider to be one of my greatest mentors on campus said something that made me think. You may know him as Marcus, Mr. Scales, the Multicultural Student Services director or your 6 a.m. spin coach. On the last night, as our group huddled for dinner, he turned to me and told me, "I'm gonna miss you, kid. Remember to enjoy the flowers while they still smell." It was a simple reminder, yet it was something I had lost sight of: Flowers aren't meant to last — they call us to stop and savor now.

It brought to mind the times I've heard "'ray Bucknell!" shouted across the grocery store, in the bustling streets of Los Angeles, California, or at art galleries in Amsterdam. Or the times where I'm home visiting the cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C., and am transported to the days spent sitting under the cherry blossoms on the quad. These encounters pull us out of the chaos of our lives, reminding us that meaning often blooms in the smallest details — if only we stop long enough to notice.

We've learned to invest in these pockets all across campus, taking time out of our busy lives to slow down and immerse ourselves in the vibrant communities that surround us. Like hearing our friends play in their bands for the very first time: Jelly Sandwich, the Priorities, Clara and the Chi Phive. Or maybe it was competing in Canoe Battleship with your friends, thinking "WE UP," only to be sunk down by Brent Papson's children. My team won this year. Or maybe it was even watching the Bison Girls and Bisonettes perform at halftime shows, or the Bisonettes performing at the beautiful LACOS, BACSA SASA, GSC, Asian and BSU cultural galas.

In fact, in our effort to make the most of this present, we have sparked and borne witness to some of the most transformative cultural and social movements of our time. As residential advisers, we were some of the first to unionize at Bucknell University. As Speak Up peers, we fought against patriarchal and violent systems of oppression. As concerned youth, we walked in solidarity with Palestinians. In fact, some of us have been some of the first in our families to achieve what some imagined was unachievable. Through our classes, our internships and on-campus research, we've interrogated what we thought we knew and challenged the status quo. Our faculty and staff pushing us to look around and envision new horizons, and to repair what is broken in the world we live in.

In our rush to accomplish more, I ask you to pause for one more breath — and recognize the privilege that it is to be counted as one of Bucknell's graduates. As an education major, and a human being, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge or recognize the systemic destruction of education across the world, especially in the Gaza Strip. And yet it is a call to responsibility in a world that requires us to make conscious decisions, invest in communities, and raise our voices about who we are and who we are meant to become. Let ourselves be a reflection not of the world as it is, but as it could and should be.

When we deliberately and systematically slow down in a world that is desperate to keep us sprinting, we engage in a kind of gentle rebellion. We realize that college was not just about our academic achievements, but how we've used the skills we've acquired to live in everyday ordinariness and turn it into something extraordinary. Learning to live by the depths of our joy, the truth of our experiences, and the hope we pour into our communities and ourselves.

And in this moment of reflection, we cannot forget the people who have supported us through this journey. Who have taught us to value the strength of collectivity — supporting, uplifting, believing in us, even when we doubted ourselves. I will say the next part in Spanish, but y'all will get the gist: A mi familia quiero decirles gracias por todos tus sacrificios, tu apoyo, tu amor. As my good friend Laura said at our Posse grad yesterday, este diploma no es solo mio si no de todos nostros.

And so, to the Class of 2025, congratulations! You have created something special here. And as we step into the next chapter, let us recognize that we are capable of transformative change. Let us continue to embrace this present, find the magic in the ordinary, and carry with us the heart and spirit Bucknell has given us.

Thank you.