As a general rule, all forms of activity lead to boredom when they are performed on a routine(常规)basis. As a matter of fact, we can see this 1 at work in people of all 2. For example, on Christmas morning, children are excited about3 with their new toys. But their4soon wears off and by January those5toys can be found put away in the basement. The world is full of 6stamp albums and unfinished models, each standing as a monument to someone's 7 interest. When parents bring home a pet, their child 8bathes it and brushes its fur. Within a short time, however, the 9of caring for the animal is handed over to the parents. Adolescents enter high school with great 10but are soon looking forward to11. The same is true of the young adults going to college. And then, how many12, who now complain (抱怨) about the long drives to work, 13drove for hours at a time when they first 14their driver's license (执照)? Before people retire, they usually 15to do a lot of 16things, which they never had17to do while working. But18after retirement , the golfing, the fishing, the reading and all of the other pastimes become as boring as the jobs they19. And , like the child in January, they go searching for new 20.
Now, I've talked much about education. I've talked about teachers' responsibility for inspiring students and pushing you to learn. I've talked about your parents' responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and you get your homework done, and don't spend every waking hour in front of the TV .I've talked a lot about your government's responsibility for setting high standards.
But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, the best schools in the world-and none of it will make a difference, none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities, unless you show up to those schools, unless you pay attention to those teachers, unless you listen to your parents and grandparents and other adults and put in the hard work it takes to succeed. That's what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education.
I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself. Every single one of you has something that you're good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That's the opportunity an education can provide.
And no matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you'll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You're going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You cannot drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You've got to train for it and work for it and learn for it.
That's okay. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who've had the most failures. J.K. Rowling's who wrote Harry Potter- her first Harry Potter book was rejected 12 times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. He lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that's why I succeed.”
And even when you're struggling, even when you're discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you, don't ever give up on yourself, because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
