Commencements. Part I

I enjoy going to graduations. I've been to three so far and it hasn't gotten old just yet. I find them all to be especially inspiring. It's a rare moment for reflection and anticipation in our hectic lives. it's a moment that combines the past, present, and future and provides a summary of the knowledge one has accumulated both academically and personally.

Commencement ceremonies span two dimensions. The sea of people in black robes sends a message of unity. But it also overwhelms the existential mindset in that graduation doesn't really mean much at all. Hundreds of people graduate within a short span of two hours. So what. What makes the difference.

6 hours of graduation-fare and plenty more of post-grad celebration has showed me that the individual makes the difference. What the degree means to the person and what the person does with the degree is what matters. Most of the grads that I spoke to said that they didn't feel any different whether their tassel was on the left or on the right. That's because change is a gradual process, not an event. Graduation is just a marker of the change, not a signifier of the change itself.




So congrats Class of 2010!! I'm so proud of you and your journeys. People have told me that it doesn't matter where you start--it's where you end up that's important. But I've come to learn that each ending has a new beginning. So let this not mark and ending but a beginning of a new chapter in your lives.