I'm sure that many of you know that I am obsessed with Toni Morrison. One of my favorite books is her novel Beloved. In the story a former slave named Sethe is haunted by the ghost of her dead child. When she is able to release the pain of the past and the ghost disappears, she mournfully tells her friend Paul D "but she was my best thing." In response, Paul D tells her "You your best thing Sethe. You are." On the occasion of the 8th grade stepping up to high-school, I would like to take the time to remind everyone here that YOU ARE YOUR BEST THING.
You are the most important thing in your lives. When I say this I'm not referring to the type of sneakers you have on, what brand name clothing you wear, or what kind of phone you own. I'm taking about what makes you- your mind, your soul, and your heart.
It is important to recognize how one behaves when they understand and believe that they are their best thing.
1. They understand that their appearance is a reflection of how they feel about themselves. However, they also know that what they have on does not define them; they define it. The Jordans don't make you look good. You make the Jordans look good!
2. They never hand in any work that doesn't represent the best of who they are. Period.
3. They don't react when people talk about them because they know how fabulous they are. They understand that what people say about other people is a reflection of how they feel about themselves.
4. They are leaders; not followers. They don't "drink the Kool-Aid" because they understand who Jim Jones was and that the “Kool- Aid” was poison. They have the courage of their convictions, yet they know how to express their opinions in a respectful and articulate way. The best examples of this are when Jahmeelah Nash Fuller told me that she didn't like The Bluest Eye because she didn't like the way the characters were presented, or when Nasir Dorsey wrote an essay about how I should never teach Purple Hibiscus again and then read it to the entire class!
5. They are generous and kind to others because they are sure that they have a limitless source of goodness in their own lives. They are confident that they can overcome any challenge that they may face.
Now, even when you understand that YOU ARE YOUR BEST THING you may encounter people who don't value you as much as you value yourself. In that case, your responsibility is to walk away. As Zora Neale Hurston says, "sometimes I feel discriminated against but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How could anyone deny themselves the pleasure of my company!"
I am (and all of your teachers are) convinced of your greatness.
There are very few people in the world who understand the benefits of composting and take ownership over recycling-but you do that!
I know very few middle school students,regardless of race or economic background, who read the New York Times every week and write essays responding to what they have read- but you do that!
Very few students in New York say that math is their favorite subject and live for the Ken-Ken puzzles that their teacher gives them, asking for more as soon as they are done with them- but you do that!
There aren't many students who know who Kara Walker is and have the confidence to approach her and strike up a conversation- but you do that!
There are very few Americans who know who Edward Snowden is, can describe the motivation behind the One Child Policy in China, or can explain the causes of the Rwandan genocide-but you do that!
And there are very few people in the world who can say that they have read and understood Toni Morrison, H.G. Wells, Chimamanda Ngoze Adichie, Ralph Ellison, and George Orwell- but you do that! All in Middle School!
We know that YOU ARE YOUR BEST THING. But now it's time for you to believe it.
We are the descendants of those who survived slavery, segregation, and colonization. As James Baldwin said "your crown has already been bought and paid for. Now all you have to do is put it on." My wish for the graduates and all the students of The Storefront is that they move forward into the future knowing that YOU ARE YOUR BEST THING.
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