Class of 2013, only you can ultimately break that cycle. Only you can make sure the democracy you inherit is as good as we know it can be. But it requires your dedicated, and informed, and engaged citizenship. And that citizenship is a harder, higher road to take, but it leads to a better place. It’s how we built this country -- together.
It’s the question that President Kennedy posed to the nation at his inauguration. It’s the dream that Dr. King invoked. It does not promise easy success or immediate progress -- but it has led to success, and it has led to progress. And it has to continue with you.
Which brings me to the second thing I ask of all of you -- I ask that you persevere. Whether you start a business, or run for office, or devote yourself to alleviating poverty or hunger, please remember that nothing worth doing happens overnight. A British inventor named Dyson went through more than 5,000 prototypes before getting that first really fancy vacuum cleaner just right. We remember Michael Jordan’s six championships; we don't remember his nearly 15,000 missed shots. As for me, I lost my first race for Congress, and look at me now -- I’m an honorary graduate of The Ohio State University. (Applause.)
The point is, if you are living your life to the fullest, you will fail, you will stumble, you will screw up, you will fall down. But it will make you stronger, and you’ll get it right the next time, or the time after that, or the time after that. And that is not only true for your personal pursuits, but it’s also true for the broader causes that you believe in as well.
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