SPEECH

As a toddler, Daughter finger-painted herself blue so she could match the sky. Days ago, she stepped off the stage at Kleinhan's Music Hall, into a future where the sky is the limit.

The Graduation atmosphere was dynamic. Joyful.

The speeches were filled with advice. Admonitions. Make a difference in your world. Work as hard as you play. Prepare for failure because it will find you. Believe in yourself and rise above the many adversities that await.

I listened to the student speakers, wondering, "Why are these teenagers so jaded?"

I listened, wondering, "Do these kids even begin to comprehend how fortunate they've been, and how fortunate most of them will continue to be?"

No doubt today's 24/7 Bad-News-Bombardment makes us feel like we are inhabitants of an increasingly dangerous and frightening world: a globe marred by melting glaciers, warring nations, and Jerry Sanduskies.

No doubt the graduates of 2012 will come of age in a world replete with daunting problems.

But they will also be privy to unimaginable opportunity. With vision, luck, a whole lot of hard work and old-fashioned optimism, they will flourish in an age where technology can (hopefully) be utilized to make us smarter and wiser.  

Days ago, I listened to half-a-dozen graduation speeches, hoping to hear one or two profound pearls of wisdom wrapped with a big hug and a "Woo-hoo!" send-off;  rather than a Fire-House-Alarm, "Prepare for battle/danger/disappointment!" kick out the door.

Graduates of 2012, I wish someone would have told you:

A world of wisdom awaits. You'll learn from professors, textbooks, and Shakespearean plays. From scientific journals, economic forecasts, and technologies that change as swiftly as you breathe. But understand that wisdom is best discovered in people who have lived. Endured. Loved. Lost. Seek out your 'elders';  parents, grandparents, neighbors, colleagues, teachers and friends.  Listen to the statistics, poetry and stories of their lives. Internalize the wisdom of their experience, as it will enrich your life.

Pay attention. To faces. Expressions. Tone of voice. Reading people will always lead to more success and happiness than reading books, computers, and smart phones.

Embrace coincidence. Opportunity often arrives - and disappears - unnoticed.

Surround yourself in stillness. Creativity there lurks.

Don't expect that anyone else will do it, see it, feel it like you do. Expectation and disappointment come shrink-wrapped and prettily packaged. Buyer beware.

Be silly. Be spontaneous. Again and again. And again.

Ask for help and accept help, as often as you offer to help. 

Study the night sky. Listen to the rain. Feel sunlight and breeze. All are nature's gentle reassurance that life is spectacular and "This too shall pass."

Give others a break. Give yourself a break, too. Compassion is the ultimate game-changer.

Forget perfection. Strive for best effort. 

Try, and try again. Love, and love some more.  

Graduates, you are stepping into a future where the sky is the limit.

Don't worry.  Be excited!

QUING Hereby Decrees: CONGRATULATIONS Graduates of 2012!