This is pretty great.
In a commencement speech to Wellesley High School seniors this week, teacher David McCullough Jr. delivered a highly unusual message for such an occasion. Simply put, he told the class before him: you are not special.
Said the son of a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian:
"Think about this: even if you're one in a million, on a planet of 6.8 billion that means there are nearly 7,000 people just like you."
What was McCullough's point? That accolades have come to mean more than "genuine achievement." As a consequence, he said:
"We cheapen worthy endeavors, and building a Guatemalan medical clinic becomes more about the application to Bowdoin than the well-being of the Guatemalans."
He concludes by emphasizing "selflessness," which can only be achieved by one realizing this overarching theme, reiterated here again: no one is special.
Along the way, McCullough manages to bash Donald Trump, Barney, the Baltimore Orioles, Mr. Rogers and the narcissistic Twitterverse. Even more impressive? The speech was met with rave reviews from those in attendance.
"For once someone told us what we need to hear and not necessarily what we wanted to hear," said one student.
Watch the speech above and react below: What do you think?