To my friends graduating from college:
Congratulations! You’ve done it. After four (or so) years, lots of late nights, plenty of boring lectures, and an acquired addiction to caffeine, you’ve finally graduated college! And for all your hard work, someone gave you a really expensive piece of paper and said it’s time for you to go make a name for yourself.
I know I’ve only been out in the world for five months now, so it might not seem like I have a lot to offer in terms of wisdom or advice. But in the five months since I graduated college, I’ve experienced a lot.
I sold or gave away most of my worldly possessions, I packed my life into a backpack, and I left home. I’ve traveled to six different countries and lived in every possible condition including: a tent, a one-room shack, and an abandoned nightclub. I’ve worked on a farm, I’ve taught English in poor villages, and I’ve held babies who were the result of rape and incest. I’ve seen some stunning scenery and some sickening destitution.
And somewhere along the way, I’ve learned a few things.
I’ve learned a lot about myself – the way I function, the way I interact with others, and the reasons for these things.
I’ve learned how to communicate with people more effectively and I’ve realized that it’s actually pretty healthy to tell people when they hurt or offend you in some way. Harboring those wounds in your heart only breeds poisonous things in your life and in theirs.
I’ve learned that there are a whole lot of people in the world who know way more than me and I should take every opportunity to absorb their wisdom and knowledge. I’ve learned to ask questions and listen closely to the answers.
I’ve learned that age doesn’t always correlate to the caliber of wisdom. The young can be wise.
I’ve learned that everyone, no matter who they are, where they’re from, or what they’ve done, just wants to be loved, listened to, and cared for. Whether a pastor, prostitute, grandma, or gang member – everyone deserves to be loved and it is a privilege for me if I’m the one who gets to love them.
(photo from Jonathan Garner)
I’ve also learned that people are generally the same everywhere. Teenage boys are teenage boys, all across the world. Old men are old men, no matter where they live. The human experience is apparently not as unique as we’ve been led to believe. No matter where one grows up, no matter what kind of life one was born into, all humans are pretty much the same.
We all experience the same basic emotions. We all have the same desires. We all have the same needs.
And I think, quite honestly, if more people realized that everyone is exceptionally similar to each other, then the world would be a better place. There would be less conflict, less hatred, fewer misunderstandings.
If we stopped insisting on a division between “us and them” – stopped mending the walls and borders that divide us and realized that we are all of one seed living under the same sky, breathing the same air, and feeling the rays of the same sun – then maybe there would be a deeper sense of unity. Maybe we would look out for each other more. Maybe we would work together more. Maybe we would love more.
Perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned since I graduated college is that it is okay to do the unexpected. Society, your peers, your family – they all have an expectation for your “next step”. If you’re like me, you felt pressure to get a degree and go find a nice desk to sit behind for the next forty years. I felt like I was an abomination to the world of college alum because the last thing I wanted was to get a nine-to-five desk job. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with doing that, but listen: don’t do that if it’s not what God has called you to do.
(photo from Chelsea Gottman)
Whatever happens next, make sure that you end up doing what makes you come alive.
Be led by the Spirit, and He’ll take you to great places. Don’t panic if those places aren’t where you planned to go. Just trust the Lord, work hard, and don’t be afraid to take some risks. Remember that some of the most successful people started with nothing and had everything stacked against them.
It’s perfectly natural to be a little terrified of suddenly being done with school and thrown out into “the real world”. But remember, if you never leave home then you’ll never know what there is to see and do and learn out here in this remarkable world.
And so my friends, now is your time. The world is literally at your doorstep and there’s nowhere to go except everywhere. Congratulations on your wonderful achievement and here’s to whatever is next!
