The following is the prepared text of remarks by graduating senior Lusciana Gomez for delivery at Stanford’s Baccalaureate ceremony on June 17, 2023.

My mom never misses an opportunity to tell someone her daughter is graduating from Stanford.

It’s funny, the way she feels about Stanford – it hasn’t changed since the day I opened my acceptance letter. It’s not just Stanford to her, it’s “ESTÁNFORD.” To her, every day I’m here is a brand new blessing. I felt like that, too, when I first got here. Everything about this place made me feel special.

But somewhere along the way, something happened. I began to live my days less and less, and I began to watch them more and more. I’d wake up and just decide that my day won’t be special – because, well, there’s no reason for it to be special today. And so I’ll just go through the motions, on autopilot. Waiting for that capital-S Something to happen, and my life would finally start.

Today was always a moment I pictured would be that “Something.” A day that marked the beginning. But of course that’s not true. The life I’ve been living every day – the life I do live every day – is real life. It’s started.

As I get older, I’m beginning to understand the value of time. The value of a moment. Without gratitude, days bleed into weeks. And weeks bleed into months. So as you navigate your next steps, remember the value of what we’re leaving behind.

If you forget the value of a year, remember what it felt like to lose a year of our education to a pandemic.

If you forget the value of a month, remember what it felt like to be a freshman. You just finished week 4, and for the first time since you got here, you thought to yourself, “Maybe I’ll be OK after all.”

If you forget the value of a week, remember how you felt during finals week, when you had four exams, three essays, and a presentation due by the end of Friday.

If you forget the value of a day, remember that the only thing worse than dining hall rock cod is day-old dining hall rock cod.

If you forget the value of an hour, remember the difference between enrolling in a 9 a.m. section versus a 10 a.m. section.

If you forget the value of a minute, remember how it felt when you tried to get into Social Dance but logged into enrollment just a minute late. You’re more likely to see Lake Lag filled for an entire year than get off that waitlist.

And if you forget the value of a second, remember the feeling in your stomach after you just nearly avoided crashing into another bike on your way to class.

The truth is that every finish line is just the sum of the steps that preceded it. Every memory is an aggregate of the moments that led up to it. I’m grateful to be here today. But I’m also grateful for yesterday. And I’m grateful for last Monday. And last February. And I’m grateful for the first time I ever drove down Palm Drive. And the first time I failed an exam. This moment is here today because of our successes – and it’s here because we dared to stand up again after each failure. Our time is priceless. And our time is now.

Congratulations, Class of 2023!