Finally, I realized when thinking about this evening that I've been at SMU so long that some may even think of me as a tradition. That's a hoot when I recall that I vowed to stay in Dallas no more than two years. Although a young institution in the college world today, SMU is the foundation of many traditions that keep up the school spirit and inspire the Mustangs on to success in every field. The same thing could be said at this moment. Before going further, let's pause a moment and define tradition to make sure that we have a common understanding as to what we're talking about.
Tradition is a story, belief, custom, or the like that is handed down from generation to generation.
Tradition is of fundamental importance to a college or university. It serves as an anchor and a compass in the sea of change in which institutions of higher learning inevitably and perennially find themselves. And no two generations of students are alike. Tradition, by extending the past into the present and the present into the future, links generations of students and provides a sense of continuity and serves as a source of inspiration. In short, tradition is not holy writ.