#joan samuelson

Nike Inc, 1988

Joan Benoit Samuelson runs marathon in Olympics taking a huge step in women rights despite men's ridicule.

Dreams, by their very nature, are often at offs with the sensible recommendations made by those who love us and who want what is best for us. But so is faith, and so is selflessness, and so are many of the other human attributes we say we admire in this society. And just as it is important to hang on to what you believe in, it is important to identify and follow your dreams. If you don't make your dreams come true, no one else can. No one else knows you as you know yourself. No one else sees your potential the way you do. You are the one who has nurtured the sparks of your character and your commitment this far, and you are the one who can make those sparks burn throughout your life. For young women, the challenges and the opportunities may never have been greater than they are today. Although there have been some ominous things written and said in the last few years about women who want to have it all, it is now common for women to balance careers and family. Today, the woman who doesn't work outside her home is the exception, and the man who objects to his wife holding an outside job is an anomaly. This social configuration would have been impossible to predict 20 years ago and when I was first trying to find my niche, and it would never have come about if women had been wiling to squeeze themselves into available roles rather than create new ones. Joan Samuelson, Colby-Sawyer College Graduation speech, New London, 1990