Edition:
June 16, 2006
Public Notices - DBA Info • CONTACT
US: News Department • Display
Advertising • Classified
Advertising
|
||
Reporter/Columnist
June, the tradition month for high school graduations throughout the nation, is filled with the promise of new students embarking into the world of work and college entrance.
Graduations are a rite of passage for the students and their families alike because it marks a significant change in how relationships grow and mature.
Suddenly, that little boy or gorgeous little girl is transformed into a capable and determined young adult almost overnight. It is both exhilarating and frightening for parents. Cutting the apron strings and letting go with grace becomes more than just giving lip service to an idea. It becomes a new way of dealing with the broader horizons that always stretch out before those young graduates beckoning them to embrace a new experience.
More than 1,000 young men and young women graduated this week from our local high schools or alternative education centers. This year, those diplomas included the controversial California Exit Exam seal as well as the notation students met and completed the requirements of the local school district and State of California.
To the graduates, congratulations on a job well done. You followed the rules, you completed the course work, you were able to demonstrate you can and will overcome obstacles that might be a deterrent to ultimate success.
To the parents, congratulations on this leg of a lifelong journey. You now can re-tool for the next adventure that includes going to junior college or four-year colleges and universities or entering the work force. There will be students living at home while others move into dorms in a campus setting. There will be students setting up housekeeping on their own or in pairs, for marriage is still a viable option for the starry-eyed youngsters who believe love conquers all.
But throughout the entire experience, the older a person gets, the more one tends to realize the only difference between the young and the old, between the adult and the child, between the optimist and the pessimist is simply age and experience.
For the truly wise, learning and the love of learning becomes a lifetime passion. We can never learn enough because there are so many things we tend to forget. The more we read, the more we can think and question. The more we think and question, the better we can choose. The wiser our choices, the better our lives and ultimately, our world.
No one ever consciously sets out a plan to fail, usually that person just fails to plan. That’s the true test of the value of education. Educated people can think both in and outside the box, they can figure out the alternatives, options and consequences of various actions. In this high tech world, the ability to think and function in an effective manner makes all the difference for the future.
The future is bright and offers great potential for both young and old. Those who take advantage of education will always be the big winners.
|
