Woodstock School Alumni Magazine Vol CIV, 2011

22 - Quadrangle
Salutatorian speech
Hyun Kue Jeong
Hyun Kue Jeong amuses President of the
Board Thomas Chandy
Good Morning, distinguished guests, parents,
staff, friends and my fellow graduating class
of 2011, it is an honour for me today to have
the opportunity to share my thoughts at this
formal occasion.
A few days ago, some of my friends told me
about Ms Seefeldt’s expectations of the student
speakers at the graduation. She has allegedly
said, “the valedictorian has been working on
her speech for about two weeks, but the salutatorian
will probably make up his speech just
five minutes before the actual ceremony.” Well.
I wasn’t too sure about that, at least at first. As
much as I would have loved to refute such an
appalling and degrading supposition (joke,
Ms Seefeldt), I must admit that she was right as
I eventually ended up putting off my preparation
for this speech until yesterday night.
Following the parents banquet yesterday
which on a side note, gave an invaluable
opportunity to hear from the perspective of
parents, I was left baffled with the task of
having to arrange the speech for the next
morning. Although numerous questions were
raised in my head due to complete lack of
prior planning, the most fundamental among
them was “what on earth am I even going
to talk about?” As far as I was concerned,
the Valedictorian speech had to do with the
values of the Woodstock experience and I
most certainly did not want to put all of you
to sleep by discussing an identical matter in
this joyful event.
To be honest, I could have probably put together
a usual generic speech without much
difficulty saying stuff like the graduation is
not the end but the new beginning and that
this is a new chapter in our lives.. Whatever.
But I am sure that we, who are no longer
children but ladies and gentlemen, as Aman
stated at the Baccalaureate, are already well
aware of the presence of various challenges in
the future. I instead hope to leave my friends
with an advice that may prove to be helpful
in addressing such challenges wherever you
may find yourself.
I had around two and a half hours of sleep
last night, having not only to write this
speech but also to finally prepare my gifts
and pack all my belongings. The question
is, am I going to learn from this experience
and stop putting off the necessary work?
For me the answer is probably NO. After
all procrastination has always been a part
of me, and it is now at the stage that it feels
even wrong when I finish an assignment
well before the due date. Nonetheless, I am
willing to fix this issue eventually.; it may
take consecutive days of all-nighters at college
or failing in an assignment, but I am
sure I will, in the near future, be motivated
to take my work more seriously in a more
demanding environment. I mean I didn’t do
too badly here despite my tendency to be
‘laid back’; after all I am salutatorian, not a
bad achievement you know.
By saying all this however, I am not warning
you merely against procrastinating since I
know that there are many hard-working in our
class who in fact deserve to be here instead of
me. What I have been attempting to tell all of
you is that you should learn or at least, like
me, be willing to learn from your mistakes.
Many of my friends tell me that I would have
been able to achieve anything had I put the
effort in. Although I highly doubt that, it’s still
I think very much possible. Similarly, learning
from mistakes will allow you to transform
your faults into your strengths, and such will
help us encounter the inevitable challenges in
life that must be dealt with.
And that was my last minute prepared speech
and congratulations to our class of Luminescence
and all those who helped us to get
here for the long-waited graduation which
looked like it was never going to come but
eventually did.
Thank You.
The SAGE Program offers high school students the opportunity to travel
and study abroad as a way to gain greater understanding of the world and
themselves. Travel abroad becomes a transformative experience, which is
carefully designed to allow participants to grow intellectually, socially, and
emotionally. We challenge students to move beyond their comfort zone, to
think more critically about the world and themselves, and to become engaged
and responsible global citizens.
“A year on the SAGE Program means many things. It means adventure,
new friendships, high-quality education and a broader world view. Perhaps
my only regret is that I couldn’t stay longer.”
–Sherry Cohen, Washington, DC
For more information, visit the SAGE website at
www.sageprogram.org