It’s the speech Harvard University is calling "the most powerful, heartfelt" speech "you will ever hear."
這篇演講被稱作“你從未聽過的”,“最有力量的,最誠摯的”哈佛大學演講。
Donovan Livingston, a master’s graduate at the university, was chosen by a committee of faculty, staff and students to speak at the School of Education’s convocation, a rep for Harvard told ABC News.
Instead of a traditional speech, Livingston used spoken word to perform his poem, "Lift Off."
區別于傳統演講,利文斯頓朗誦了他的詩歌《啟飛》。
Livingston told ABC News that the "true inspiration behind the piece" was the fact that he couldn’t perform a poem when he gave his commencement remarks during his senior year of high school.
"The teacher who was in charge...threatened to take me offstage or cut my microphone when she caught wind that I wanted to incorporate a poem," he recalled. "She wanted it to be traditional. So I complied, but I really wanted to address my class in my most authentic voice, which is what I said onstage Wednesday."
"I’ve been a black hole in the classroom for far too long;
“我像黑洞一樣在教室里潛伏了許久;
Absorbing everything, without allowing my light to escape.
我拼命吸收一切,不讓任何一點光芒逃跑。
But those days are done. I belong among the stars.
但那些日子已經過去。我融進了星河。
And so do you. And so do they.
你們也是如此。他們也是如此。
Together, we can inspire galaxies of greatness
讓我們攜手,激發出銀河系中的偉大
For generations to come.
以待后輩。
So no, sky is not the limit. It is only the beginning.
所以啊,不,天空并不是極限。天空僅僅是開始。
Lift off."
啟飛吧。”
The speech has been seen by more than 5 million people and was even shared by Justin Timberlake and Hillary Clinton.
演講視頻已經有超過500萬人次觀看,連由賈斯汀·汀布萊克和希拉里·克林頓都分享了這段視頻。
Livingston -- who hopes to become a faculty member or an administrator at a university one day -- said he did not expect to get a standing ovation, nor did he expect the speech to go viral.
It makes sense for the son of two educators: His father is a retired principal and his mother is a speech pathologist, working with special needs students.
"I’ve always been around education, but I didn’t know it was something I was really passionate about until I got to college and looked around and saw ... that everything I did catered to college access [and] college success. It felt natural," the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, resident said. "I’m just really happy to carry on the legacy of my mother and father and I’m just grateful to walk in their footsteps."