Charnette Miller thought former Mississippi first lady Pat Fordice gave an inspirational speech to the Cathedral student body on Monday.

&uot;She was very, very nice,&uot; Miller said.

The 16-year-old sophomore was one of over 240 students to kick off Catholic Schools Week with a keynote address by Fordice on &uot;Harmony Day&uot; Monday.

Fordice was invited to Cathedral by Cathedral senior and president of the student council, Jack Byrne.

&uot;She is a personal role model for me,&uot; Byrne said. &uot;She is someone you can take pride in as a role model. She sees the importance of talking to people like us.&uot;

Fordice told the students that she was very gratified by the warm welcome.

&uot;It’s wonderful that you still think I’m important enough to invite,&uot; she said.

Fordice shared the wisdom of her &uot;full and loving life,&uot; including what she referred to as her five guiding principles: faith in God, curiosity, determination, hard work, and bravery.

&uot;I can see in your faces the future of our state and nation -&160;lighting the new millennium,&uot; Fordice said.

She challenged the students to &uot;live up to every promise&uot; in their lives, but to understand that &uot;time and chance&uot; happen to everyone.

&uot;Hopefully that will give you peace in times of failure and humble gratitude in times of success,&uot; she said. &uot;Times with God are the most productive, positive times of life,&uot; she said. &uot;It will guide us through the darkest of times.&uot;

She shared humorous homilies from her childhood, or what she called wisdom learned from her mother.

&uot;My mother taught me about genetics – ‘you’re just like your father’,&uot; she said. &uot;You can’t make everyone love you. Be someone that can be loved and the rest is up to them.&uot;