A student from Zimbabwe has received much more than music education during his time at Berklee.

Kundayi Musinami speaks at the Opening Day breakfast
Photo by Phil Farnsworth

Thank you. It is a great honor and blessing to stand before you. When presented with this wonderful opportunity to share with all of you, I considered how getting personal makes us vulnerable. Getting sincerely personal often demands that we embark on the journey of self-examination. Which brings us to that Socratic line 24 of the Apologia, "the unexamined life is not worth living," to which Malcolm X responded, "the examined life is painful." Self-examination takes us to the core of what life really is and who we really are.

I have come to believe that it is there, at our weakest, most vulnerable moment that we discover the very essence of the human spirit. It is only then that we can uplift it to greater heights. It is like our breath. In fact, in Shona culture (which is my native tribe), we use one and the same word for "breath," "spirit," "mind," "Holy Spirit," "ghost," and "wind." 

As an international student I arrived from Zimbabwe, leaving my dad in a coma, to pursue my dreams. I was completely driven by faith and passion. I did not know anybody in the United States. I had only $12 dollars in my pocket, no money for tuition, and no scholarship. I met some strangers at the airport who were there to pick up a minister of the Word who would be preaching at their church that very evening. Long story short, they ended up taking me along with them to church. The first thing I did in the United States was attend a church service.

A few days later I remember walking into [director of admissions, scholarships, and student employment] Damien Bracken's office without a penny to my name—just a passion and a dream. I had been to every other office in the building and everyone I had spoken to seemed to make it clear: "Your situation is impossible and there is nothing that can be done for you." But thank God there was someone who was wiling to tackle the impossible and breathe life into my fainting hopes and dreams. I had already missed out on one week of classes and all hope seemed lost, but Damien Bracken believed enough to give it a try. He uplifted my spirit by first simply listening and then going to do whatever it took to make sure this dream stayed alive.

It's been four years now and I have not seen my family or returned home once due to economic and political reasons. Last year Grandma passed away. She raised me, and when I was a baby she saved my life. Her passing, well, it broke my spirit! Last summer my brother, the oldest, working in the secret service protecting the president for over 10 years, was shot in cold blood by his own fellow serviceman. I couldn't go home to lay him to rest with my family, and that pulverized my spirit!

And when that which houses your passions is crushed, a whole lot is lost including the desire to go on.

But in that hour of despair, embracing the underside of tragedy and anger, what kept my spirit uplifted and what kept me revitalized is right here. It was going to classes—like my private lesson period where Charles Sorrento met me at the door, arms open wide, big smile, laughter, and in between every few measures hearing him make reference to something that spoke to my spirit and passion. Whether he knew it or not, he became family. Going beyond the technique and reading it right (which he did make sure I did), it was going to class with Marlon Saunders, Joanne Whitaker (she called us her "little ones," catering to our needs with diligence and sincerity). Meeting Rob Jaczko in the hallway, and he'd take a minute to stop, shake your hand, and ask "how's everything going?" Mitch Benoff, Dr. Bill Banfield, Dr. Sally Blazar, Prince Charles Alexander—going against the norm, going against the grain, and transforming the classroom into a place of not just learning but a place of restoration, a place of nourishment and refreshing.

From semester to semester, the staff and faculty at Berklee have helped me stay above the water and keep my vision and spirit nourished. Joyce Henderson (Diva J) full of love and compassion, my admissions family, Julie in Financial Aid, Vanessa Stathis in the Bursar's office—constantly coming up with creative ways to keep me enrolled and being radically understanding and becoming a constant source of encouragement.

This fall, thousands of students will enter your classrooms and offices once again. The new students have arrived with big dreams and passions neatly tucked away in their hearts. Others will be returning ready to go at it again, and others hoping they can find that passion they once had when they first arrived and when they first believed it was possible. They all need you to reach out to their little hearts and touch them in spirit.

Each of you feed our minds and our intellect, and you uplift our spirits. I, along with all the students, commend each and every one of you and hope that you continue to share yourselves, and may you find the courage to constantly look inward and find the best of yourselves to give. 

Every day you become mentors and more essentially family to us in one way or another. Be encouraged and of good cheer, for there are many whose dreams and visions will forever be indebted to you. 

As one who thrives on faith, I leave you with this: "For the wind blows (breathes) where it wills; and though you hear it sound, you neither know where it comes from nor where it's going: so it is with everyone that is born of the spirit." You are the wind. Every day we feel the effects of your motion turning our wills of passion setting us in motion. Keep us in motion; stir us in the path of purpose, passion, and above all relevance. And in turn, our spirits, our little hearts, with overflowing passion will uplift yours too from time to time. I thank you.