So I just played along with a Facebook Meme and posted my Senior Picture in support of the Class of 2020, who are all going to miss out on their graduations. My heart goes out to all those youth as they prepare to miss out on some of our time-honored rites of passage. However, this is an unprecedented time in the history of not only our nation, but the entire world, and we have to face it head on, staring it right in the eye.
In the meantime, let me share my perspective 44 years after my own graduation. As much fun as I had (or sometimes didn’t have), I now look at my High School years as a mixed bag of hormone fueled emotional highs and lows. As I am sure is true for many. Whether it is the high point of your life or a prison sentence that you are just trying to get through, High School is certainly a time of highly charged emotional experiences. For example, I didn’t attend my senior prom. I was too shy to ask anyone. And I’m ok with that. Now. My life since I graduated has more than made up for that experience I missed.
And that’s my point. High School is just a launch pad for the rest of your life. Whether it has been a good experience for you or torture; if you were popular, just had a small circle of friends, or were a complete loner, what matters is what you decide to do with the rest of your life. Whether you go to college and earn a degree, go into a trade, or even if it takes you while to find your footing and figure out a non-traditional path for yourself like me, it’s all good. And what it turns into is entirely up to you.
You are the author of your own auto-biography. You write the script and act in the drama of your own life. It’s up to you whether it’s a sit-com, a fantasy adventure or a horror story. Own this power. It is the most powerful weapon in your arsenal. Whatever life throws at you, whatever curve balls, tragedies, hardships or challenges you have to face, you get to choose how you respond. In the end, it’s the one thing nobody can take away from you.
So class of 2020, I salute you as you face a unique situation. Your senior year has been stolen from you by an unseen enemy that threatens everyone. And the world is at a turning point. Things may never be the same as they were before. So now the question remains, what kind of story are you going to write with your life?
Steven Kacsmar & Sun Lotus Music 