Full text of Rev. Joanne Sanders' Commencement Benediction
Each beginning demands an ending.
Every ending promises a beginning.
Now is such a time.
Go now and may passion inspire you,
May injustice trouble you,
May hope comfort you,
May friendship nourish you.
May you sometimes get it right.
May you laugh when you don't.
May peace surround you,
May love permeate you,
May gratitude overwhelm you.
Go now knowing that good, thoughtful and loving words have been spoken for you in this remarkable place filled with friends, with teachers, with mentors, with wisdom, with hopes and with dreams.
And as you go may you find the right questions to ask, may you give more than you have received, and may you know the depth of your knowledge, of your compassion, now and in the days to come.
Go now in peace. Live simply, gently, at home in yourselves. Act justly. Speak honestly. May the Love that overcomes all differences, that heals all wounds, that puts to flight all fears, that reconciles all who are separated be in us and among us now and always.
