Graduations, Paths, And The Road Ahead

We as human beings are largely focused on goals. We are focused on the end point, the conclusion, the target. But what makes us uniquely ourselves is not the goal, or the conclusion, or the end point – it’s the PATH. Your paths will all be different from one another. Some of you might be off to a four year college. Some of you might be spending a year or two in a transition program. Still others might be exploring other paths towards your future. Your paths are all different but each one involves steps that will take you down the road to being the person that you are meant to be. The path isn’t always going to be easy – it certainly hasn’t been for me. Many times I have looked up at the sky, or down at the ground, and wondered why. Just this past week, I have had the opportunity to ask the question why? Why has this happened? What should I do? And then I put one foot in front of the other, and take my next step on the path. As Winston Churchill once said, and he knew something about failures and setbacks, as well as bravery and triumph - “Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” Each one of you has taken very different pathways to be here today. Our paths are not straight. They are winding, and twisted. Sometimes they double back on themselves, and sometimes you can’t see where you are going. But your path is YOUR path. Your path is you. Embrace your path because at the end of it lies the person that you were meant to be – with all your faults, accomplishments, mistakes, imperfections, and triumphs.