Congratulations, graduates.
With a diploma in hand, you are about to discover how much you thought you knew about the real world and how little you actually know.
There’s no need to feel bad. This is a road that each of us has traveled down. The only question is how quickly we realize this hard truth . . . if at all.
And in no way are we implying that your teachers, coaches and others haven’t done their job. In fact, we have nothing but high praise for our public education system.
It must be remembered, however, that this was only a foundation on which to build.
As an athlete, think back on the coaches who pushed you to go beyond your pain threshold, beyond what you felt your body was capable of doing. Until an athlete is willing to step outside their comfort zone they will never realize their full potential.
The same is true of the way we think and in how we view life.
We can refuse to challenge ourselves mentally, to accept things as they are now with the assumption they won’t change — or shouldn’t change. We can deny facts, or worse yet believe there are “alternative facts,” in an attempt to explain away things we don’t want to understand.
Or we can approach life with an open mind, a desire to learn and a willingness to accept change.
This generation has never-before-seen opportunities to learn about life, different cultures and interact with people in a way that was unimaginable just a generation ago. We have never enjoyed greater opportunity to bridge cultural gaps and gain a deeper understanding of each other.
But change doesn’t come easily. We are creatures of habit who prefer that things be a certain way. We don’t want disruptions in our routine or feel forced to accept new “norms” — even if it’s in our own best interest.
We once refused to wear a seat belt because it was our belief that the government had no place infringing upon what we felt was a personal choice. We resisted, even as we knew of friends who were seriously injured or paralyzed as the result of a vehicle accident in which they chose not to wear a seat belt.
Today, we wouldn’t think of traveling out of town without our seat belt fastened.
We learned. We adapted.
As a youngster, it was common to hear racial slurs, even among some family members. When you don’t grow up with a minority population in your school or community, one imagines those words are harmless because they don’t apply to anyone we know.
