Deans, invited guests, faculty members, families and friends, welcome.

We’ve been wandering the waters for a long time now.

Two years ago we embarked in an odyssey of epic proportions, setting sail for the promised land of knowledge and braving the high seas searching for the light of learning. The journey was arduous and nautical miles away from being a smooth sailing. We battled tidal waves, endured gusty gales and withstood homesickness. There were starless nights, and bleak days that caused our hopes of reaching shore to dwindle, and treacherous turbulences that put us off the trail. It is no secret that, at different junctions of time, we rode forlorn, drifted away upon the currents of the unknown, skeptical about whether we would ever make it through.

But the voyage was nothing short of tailwinds that propelled our boat and beacons that lit the abyss looming ahead en route to enlightenment. We encountered the guiding hands of veteran men and women whose shared experience and imparted wisdom were the lifelines we hung onto throughout our expedition until today.

Today marks the conclusion of our trek. Today, the ship safely moors up. At last, we drop the anchor as we have finally… victoriously reached our port of call, not a single man left behind. We came from all nooks of the world, representing all walks of life, laden with all sorts of ambitions: the swollen, the small, the far-fetched, and the pragmatic. We had nothing in common except the vessel we boarded on two years ago and a drive to achieve and… succeed.

We started our travel as single individuals, and steadily built up a joint history and collective memories for ourselves, to end up as a single unified unit that is now reaping the rewards of draining all-nighters, frequent panic attacks operating Bloomberg terminals, and countless hours spent on preparing for multimedia projects and deciphering financial statements.

Dedication and determination drove us to where we stand now. Speed bumps along the road never seized to multiply with each semester that passed, but we faced them with level-headedness, persistence, and… occasional whining. The more complicated our tasks became, the more responsible we turned, and the stronger we grew to be, because we embodied the forever resilient spirit of Tsinghua University, and embraced its motto “self-discipline and commitment”.

Today sees our hard work being celebrated. But as we flaunt our graduation gowns and caps, let us put the brakes on the enthrallment, pause for a minute and give credits to those who have taken it upon themselves to mold us into critical thinkers, equip us with rrequisite skills to tackle the world outside campus walls, and install the seed of self-directed evolution. The destination we have harbored at today will be the point of departure of another journey commencing soon. As we latch our suitcases to undertake a new endeavor, each in his own uncharted waters, the words of Professor Lee Miller, HangMin, James Breiner, Lu Jia and many many others will forever reverberate in our mind, chaperoning us every turn and twist of our upcoming life.

Graduating class of 2014, together we’ve been through thick and thin, headaches and happiness, hills and hollows, fuss and fun. Tonight, we are heading out with more than just a certificate. We are leaving Tsinghua with recognition from China’s most acclaimed academic institution that we are go-getters, and a validation that we have the factor of excellence.

So off we go into new and fresh ventures, taking up challenge after challenge, to become the change this world needs, for we are proudly Tsinghua Graduates. We are the GBJers. We rock.

Thank you.