感谢威利校长，感谢在座的各位朋友、各位嘉宾以及我们今天最重要的主角——威斯康辛大学2003届毕业生们。

　　Before I start my remarks, I'd like everyone just to do something for me. Very simply — so everyone can kind of just get to know everyone else — on the count of three, I'd like everyone to turn around and shake the hand of the person sitting right behind you. One, two, three — right now, everybody, please do that.

　　在我正式讲话以前，我想让每个人先做一件小事，一件非常简单的事，以便使你们能认识其他一些人——当我数到三时，我希望每个人都转过身与坐在你后面的人握握手——一、二、三，现在，请按我说的做。

　　So, I guess you still have a few things to learn.

　　所以，我认为你们仍有一些东西需要学习。

　　My parents cried when I left for California. Not because I was leaving, (but) rather, I think, because they were afraid I'd be coming back. Not one teacher I ever had in grade school, high school or college would've believed that there was even the slightest chance that one day I would be asked to give the commencement address at a major university.

　　当我动身前往加利福利亚州的时候，我的父母哭了。我想，他们哭不是因为我要离开了，反而是怕我将会折回。从小学到高中再到大学的所有老师没有一个会想到我能有机会被一所重点大学邀请发表毕业演讲。

　　Many, given the opportunity, would've bet large sums of money against it, putting up their homes and children as collateral. Actually, I really like the idea of that, not because I'm vindictive — although in a few minutes I'm going to read the names of all the people in my life who never thought I would amount to anything — but because life should be unpredictable. And I'm very grateful that I never wasted any time trying to become somebody else's image of what I should be.

　　如果有机会的话，许多人都会下很大赌注，押大把的钱，甚至以自己的家庭和孩子为抵押。实际上，我很欣赏那种想法，不是因为我心怀仇恨——虽然在几分钟后我将说出一些人名，这些人从不认为我会做成什么事——而是因为生活难以预测。我也非常欣慰，因为我没有浪费时间去变成别人认为我应该成为的样子。

　　名校简介

　　校训：Numen Lumen (英文"God, our light", 中文 “主，我们的光芒”)

　　威斯康辛大学（麦迪逊分校），位于美国中部的威斯康辛州，建校于1848年，是一所著名的公立大学，教学严谨且学风优良。多年以来，学校以独具一格的教学和课程设置被评为全美优秀大学之一。

　　威斯康辛大学设有100多个本科专业，一半以上可以授予硕士、博士学位。许多学科都有相当雄厚的科研和教学实力，大部分在美国大学相应领域排名居于前十位。威斯康辛大学已有18位教授或校友获得诺贝尔奖。