Commencement

As I watched my youngest receive a diploma for a second discipline in college, my memory wafted back to my own high school graduation of 40 years ago. I couldn’t help thinking that ‘commencement’ is, indeed, an appropriate ceremonial label because it can be looked upon as either an ending or as a beginning, depending on one’s personal perspective. All those who have come this far to earn this honor are, at this moment, filled with exhilarating hopes and aspirations for their own respective futures. They have worked diligently to get to this point and they deserve our recognition and heartfelt congratulations for their splendid achievements.
There’s just one thing that’s really bothering me: the challenges this 2011 graduating class faces are nothing short of ENORMOUS.

Brave optimism, nevertheless, has to face this harsh reality of the world we live in head-on. Good, wishful intentions aside, this is going to take a lot of doggone hard work, ingenuity and resourcefulness. Sadly, I don’t think this will be easy as my dear graduate faces:

Unemployment hovering near double digits for the young and inexperienced (as well as, the older and experienced)

The dilemma of quality, affordable health care and the diminishing of needed pharmaceuticals that are produced

Catastrophic and deadly new microbes that are the result of mass production or chemical overuse without any oversight or inspection

Financial instability causing mass foreclosures of home ownership or businesses that fail (if they even had a chance to begin in the first place)

A crumbling, infra-structure in need of maintenance 2 years ago, let alone now

Increased costs for the essentials of daily living such as food and fuel

Severe reductions in necessary and altruistic services such as education, parks and recreation, mass transit, postal delivery, garbage collection, etc., etc., etc.

Catastrophic natural disasters of epidemic proportions: floods, fires, massive storms of destruction causing untold amounts of costs

Wars within our social structures we cannot afford and wars outside of our borders we cannot afford

Can the graduating class of 2011 stand up to all these severe challenges? They have no choice! Despite the current shaky circumstances, I dare predict that by going through these very impositions together, they will be stimulated into a new ‘call to action’…the foundation of which becomes rock-solid. I am undeniably confident in the belief of my graduate’s capability to capture the elusive wind of opportunity, and to pilot the course of life’s sailboat directly onto the much yearned-for and desired shore of success.

©2011 Debbie Ballard