Waddell told the graduates that he wouldn't trade his accident for the experiences he'd had, and wouldn't trade walking for the person he'd become. When he told his yoga teacher he still needed some form of acceptance for the accident, she replied, 'It's not acceptance. It's just a change in direction.' He urged the class not to be bound solely to their plans, quoting Harry Chapin: 'No straight lines make up my life. All my roads have bends, there's no clear-cut beginning and so far no dead ends.'