Revised: 31 Jan. 2021
Folks, recently I was cleaning out a file cabinet and came across a typed copy of a speech I'd given to MLS graduates in 1991, nearly 30 years ago. Yes, I'm a lifelong packrat who now must cope with its consequences. Fortunate to have been asked to give a few graduation speeches to MLS grads decades ago.
On the upside it made me realize that my December blog - Sweet Dreams (Musings on the benefits of a well-rounded education) - had its origins decades ago. So what I did was to scan the speech pages into my computer, convert each .jpg photo to PDF using Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, then export as Word doc so I could copy each page into this blog.
Yes, I realize that some parts of the speech won't make sense to non-MLS grads or to non-medical laboratory technologists/biomedical scientists. Yet I hope that the blog's main theme will resonate with all health professionals. See the tidbits under 'What You Learned' and 'Personal Development' below.
SPEECH TO 1991 MLS GRADSThanks very much Terry [Terry the MC, was a fellow MLS instructor] for your generous introduction. I am really glad to have this time because there are a few things I still need to cover with this class.
First, I thought we would have a spot quiz. I should point out that some of the answers will only make sense to the graduates. So let's begin, then, starting with a test of your long-term memory.
SPOT QUIZQuestion #1: How many First Year MLS students does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: Five: One to change it and four to set up Kohler illumination.
Question #2: How many Second Year students does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: None. At least not in my class. You see, they were all asleep and the light would only have disturbed them.
Question #3: How many Third Year students does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: The whole class. One student to change it and the rest to complain that their friends in other faculties had all summer off to do it.
Question #4: This one is a test of your short term memory. How many Fourth Year students does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: Again, the whole class. One to change it and the rest to complain that it should be deleted from Path 401 [Course at the time, perhaps no longer exists?]
Before turning to the last question, could I prevail upon John S. to come to the podium. Well, this is something you have waited a long time for. Could we have the Gingerbread Lady please. Ladies and Gentlemen - I should explain that the Gingerbread Lady, our very own Rosemarie Cunningham [hematology instructor], always brings students gingerbread men at the end of Second Year. John pulled an Oliver Twist and said, “more please’, during third year. Well, better late than never. Let’s have a hand for this cookie monster. [Rosemarie gave him a gingerbread cookie]
Question 5: And now, so the instructors won't be left out, here's the last question. How many MLS instructors does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: Ten. One to change it and nine to evaluate whether it was done right.
AMBASSADORSThe thought occurred to me that in one way or another we all act as ambassadors. For example, when we are tourists in a foreign country, or when we interact with visitors to our city.
So I would like to talk tonight about the idea that all of you - the MLS graduates of 1991 - are going to be ambassadors for MLS whether you realize it or not. No matter what the future holds for each of you, all of the people you will meet will be gaining impressions of MLS through you, your actions, and attitudes.
Now before you say, "Good grief! I can't handle the pressure - MLSers for life" - 1 want to tell you that I have great faith in each and every one of you. As an MLS instructor I have been privileged to share a part of your life for the past three years or so. Let me explain why I think that you will be great ambassadors. In a way I feel like mosquito in a nudist colony. I don’t know where to start.
WHAT YOU LEARNEDTo begin with, there are all of the things you have learned while in MLS. And I'm not talking about the information and technical skills you have assimilated, although these are important. You have learned so much that what you have forgotten would fill a library. No, I'm talking about skills that you will find useful all your lives.
For example, you have learned how to be good listeners. Goodness knows you have had enough practice being listeners during your time here. As you begin your careers, remember the words of a wise person who once said, "good listeners are not only popular everywhere, but after a while they know something."
You have also learned how to communicate clearly, both orally and in writing. Who can ever forget their first teaching assignment? I should explain that our students give at least three presentations to classmates and instructors beginning with teaching assignments during the Third Year.
I'm sure that some of you think that teaching assignments were cruel and unusual punishment, both for the student and the audience. But, boy, do they ever pay off! The progress you made was really shown during presentation of your research projects. Your instructors and supervisors were very impressed. This will be a real plus for you in any career. I tell you this because I have seen many technologists, scientists, and doctors who have not had the advantage that teaching assignments provide, namely to express ideas clearly and concisely.
There are many other intellectual skills you have learned, such as your grasp of the scientific method and all that entails. You have developed the ability to be skeptical about so-called established knowledge, and to be open-minded about issues. You know that it is okay to say, "Gee, I don't know, but I will find out." You know how to learn. You will draw on these skills over and over again, especially because medical laboratory science is evolving so rapidly.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
I would like to shift for awhile to some of the ways you have all grown in your personal development. Those of you who entered MLS lacking self-confidence have seen your belief in your abilities increase. Self-confidence is essential because no one will believe in you if you don't believe in yourself. I'm not talking about being over-confident and self-important, but rather about the quiet self-assurance of people who are competent and know it.
Conversely, if you came with a fair degree of self-confidence, if you were like me at 18 (and trust me, I was18 once - and thought I pretty much knew everything) - then your experiences in MLS have added to your growth by teaching you humility.
Your entire Third Year was an exercise in discovering your strengths and weaknesses, coming to terms with them, and accepting both praise and criticism gracefully. It was hard to be evaluated each and every day of your hospital rotation; it was hard to accept feedback that you may or may not have felt was justified.
But you all did it, and because of this you will have a big advantage in the workplace, as well as in life. Having a positive approach to learning will always serve you well. You know that imperfection is only human. The important thing is that we all try to do better. And keep in mind that misery is optional.
You have also learned what friendship means. In the years ahead, you will remember your friends very fondly. One definition of a friend is "a friend is one who dislikes the same people that you dislike." There is a lot of truth in this, but a better way to think of friendship is to realize that the only way to have a friend is to be one. You have all done that during your university days.
Thank you very much asking me to speak and for listening.
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////As always, comments are most welcome. Now that you've read the graduation speech, please see an earlier blog closely related to this one: Sweet Dreams (Musings on the benefits of a well-rounded education).
FOR FUN
This song by Canada's Sarah McLachlan seemed right for a speech given 30 years ago. Fact is, I remember all my 'kids' (those I taught decades ago) with a great deal of affection.
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