Rainy Days and Graduation (Speeches) [PICTURES]

After a long week of finals and nail biting, I don't think a little rain can dampen the mood today.

I don't profess to have the key to magic land or grand advice for today's graduate... I know to be happy it has to come from within, but from 22-26 is the time where you'll learn that on your own. You have to fall... fail... succeed and stand all on your own. My history, my journey will not act as a guide to you today, as you are the champion of your life and you will have to make your own notations in your own life story. Along the way, I hope that you heal quickly from your falls and don't internalize your failures... I'll wish that you'll know that success usually comes with the help of others and that you don't stand alone in your triumphs, that you're wise enough not to leave the deserving behind. There will be times when your failures belong solely to you as with your successes... be brave enough to face them with a full heart and an open mind. Nothing that happens, good or bad, will define you. Your core will carry you through it all. And on the other side you will stand in your own light, a light you created and found through your journey's... your stumbles... your leaps... with and without the aid of others. Go forward and know that the best and worst of times lie before  you.  -D Dennison

notable graduation speeches:

• “You're about to enter into a world filled with hypocrisy and doublespeak, a world in which your limo to the airport is often a half-hour late. In addition to not even being a limo at all; often times it's a Lincoln Towncar. You're about to enter a world where you ask your new assistant, Jamie, to bring you a tall, non-fat latte. And he comes back with a short soy cappuccino. Guess what, Jamie? You're fired. Not too hard to get right, my friend...-Will Ferrell
• “As you start your journey, the first thing you should do is throw away that store-bought map and begin to draw your own …-Michael Dell, founder of Dell Computers
• “Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never – in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. …-Winston Churchill
• Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice, heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary… Stay hungry, stay foolish.”-Steve Jobs

To read more notable speeches  gathered by CNBC  click here.

To all the graduates, Congratulations! And come rain or shine this is your day, celebrate responsibly and get set for your new journey... it's gonna be a wild ride, have fun.

CSU commencements today are also available via webcast.