On the eve of the year-end holidays, high school students from across the country with exceptional academic performance were awarded the “Gold Medal” in a special ceremony, now a tradition, held in the Map Room at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Prime Minister Edi Rama presented the Gold Medal to 188 graduates, now university students, as a symbol of their academic success.
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Prime Minister Edi Rama: We have 188 medals to award, so I won’t open the file with my speech, and I promise I won’t give any advice because I always remember the time when I was your age. I was under the constant pressure of my parents, and I would talk to myself, telling myself, ‘Swear that you’ll never forget that when you grow up to be like them, you won’t act like them, and you won’t give unsolicited advice.’
That said, since you’re here, I must apologize for repeating myself—something that feels natural whenever I have the great honor, because of my role, to be part of this ceremony. It’s a special honor, and having the opportunity to gather all the best of the best in one place, to look into the eyes of the heroes of a time when it’s not easy to be a positive hero, especially in a world where, thanks to social media, the space is filled with negative heroes, is a privilege.
What I want to repeat is that I’m sure among you there are girls and boys who’ve grown up in families facing many challenges. I’m sure there are girls and boys here who may have only one parent working.
I am convinced that among you there are girls and boys who have earned all 10s, even though they had another option—the option to find countless excuses not to be at the top and not to stay at the top, because of this or that reason.
I am also convinced that among you there are girls and boys who may have had to walk long distances every morning. Yet, despite these daily challenges, despite the opportunity to say, ‘I can’t do this because I have this problem, I have that problem,’ and to be fully justified in doing so, let’s be clear: you have chosen the hardest path. You have chosen to challenge all the objective difficulties you faced, not because of anything you did, and today, you stand here as symbols of long-term success. It’s not one exam, it’s a lifetime spent climbing the mountain, despite the obstacles and hardships. That’s why you’re here at the top today, and of course, other peaks await you to climb.
For this reason, you are heroes to me! Believe me when I say this—the moment of awarding the gold medals is the only time throughout my entire year of work, when I feel truly smaller than those I’m facing. Believe me, I envy you.
I envy you because the entire world lies ahead of you, ready for you to conquer it. You have all the time in the world, and unlike when I was your age, you have everything at your disposal if you want your knowledge to be as vast as the world itself. You have endless opportunities to explore every corner of knowledge, thanks to technology. The authors you wish to meet and the ones you want to befriend are within your reach. You have all the tools to be the best in the world—and you’re already doing it. Keep going!
This is the only advice I can offer, though it’s not really advice—just encouragement. And never forget that a dream, is something you can see with your eyes wide open. As long as you see it with your eyes open, you can achieve it. But between you and that dream is a sea that you must be ready to cross on foot—without retreating from the waves, without giving up when the storms raise the waves are so high they almost drown you, without being tempted by fatigue to turn back to the shore. If you are ready to make all the sacrifices that dream requires—because the bigger the dream, the greater the sacrifices it demands. And this is the life of many stars you admire today, in every field. None of those stars have shone by themselves, and none of them have shone simply because fate made them shine. Because fate is the character of a person.
These are just a few words I want to share with you today, making this the shortest speech I’ve ever given, which is not typical for me. I want to make sure we don’t leave here without handing out all 188 medals. So, I’m inviting Ogerta and Bora to join me in this special moment for you, and I thank you all sincerely. Believe me when I say this—I thank you from the bottom of my heart because you truly inspire me.
When I reflect on what I’ve just said and think about how you’re all here, at the peak of your first major achievement, receiving the gold medal after overcoming every challenge, I find myself thinking, ‘If you can do it, so can I. If, when you leave this room, you feel a bit tired, know that it’s the energy I’ve taken from you for myself. Laugh, but believe me, it’s true. It’s exactly as I’m telling you.
It doesn’t happen often—it’s actually quite rare—that we find ourselves in a situation where we can take when so much energy. And if I can admit that, I’m taking advantage of my position, it’s because I’ve invited you all here, and in the meantime, I’m taking as much energy as I can from you, because you have plenty of it. You might feel a little tired, but then you’ll go home, where you’ll be greeted with all the honors you deserve. Your mom will cry, your dad will smile, your grandmother will cry, your grandfather will get emotional—and you’ll give them all your energy back, replacing the energy I took from you.
And they are ready to give everything for you, just as they have already given all they could so far. And for them, it will be easy to recharge their energy, simply by thinking that if they feel a bit tired at the end of the day, it’s because they’ve been tired for you.
Much respect! Much gratitude! Much admiration for all of you!
Keep your heads high, your eyes on the prize, and continue pushing forward. Nothing will stop you. Have faith. You will overcome every obstacle on the road to realizing your ambitions, whatever they may be.
Thank you!