The valedictorian of Anson High School "preached" during this speech on Saturday, June 8, bringing the audience to their feet and to tears.
Using bits of the poem, "Still I Rise" by Maya Angelou, Tyson spoke of a hard-knocked life - one of skimpy resources and a bleak outlook. He turned to the streets and even once contemplated suicide.
To paraphrase Dr. Phil, "How did that work for ya?"
It didn't.
So Tyson decided in the ninth grade that he would give academics a try.
At the end of his freshman year, he was fourth in his class. Michelle McLeod was fifth. They then made a pact to finish first and second in their senior class.
Ta-da! Fast forward to Saturday and they did just that. McLeod was salutatorian and was mentioned in Tyson's graduation speech.
He earned full scholarships to Howard University, Wake Forest University and UNC-Chapel Hill. He chose the latter.
Tyson said he was told "you think they are going to let a black man be valedictorian? Or a black girl be salutatorian?"
He responded, "They didn't let us do anything. We earned it."
I am so proud of Tyson because he epitomizes the phrase, "It's not how you start, it's how you finish."
It's not where you come from, it's where you're going.
It's not how deep you get down ... it's how far you rise.
"You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise."
No comments:
Post a Comment