{"id":4788,"date":"2015-05-28T06:18:25","date_gmt":"2015-05-28T10:18:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=4788"},"modified":"2015-05-28T06:18:25","modified_gmt":"2015-05-28T10:18:25","slug":"forks-sharks-bridges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=4788","title":{"rendered":"forks, sharks & bridges"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"QTrNn7DETWGsjyS5L2n5__MG_8345\"<\/a>As we move closer to the more formal pomp and circumstance coming this weekend — and prior to posting our second \u201cNote to the Graduate\u201d — I thought it may be interesting to observe the encouragement others have offered this special time of year. What words do people say to the young men and women now entering adulthood?<\/p>\n

I laughed when SNL\u2019s Maya Rudolph encouraged Tulane grads to \u201ctake as many bikini photos as you can now\u201d<\/em> because, well, the body changes. I smiled, as well, at the wisdom Jon Bon Jovi continues to exude, evident in his address at Rutgers University, where he sang, “This isn’t how the story ends, my friends; it’s just a fork along the road.”<\/em><\/p>\n

I was equally intrigued by the words Meredith Viera shared at Boston University: \u201cBe the left shark. Remember last Super Bowl, when the Patriots won? You may be thinking of Tom Brady’s deflated balls right now, but I’m thinking of Katy Perry’s halftime performance. She was on stage dancing with two sharks. The shark on the right knew every dance move and performed perfectly. But it was the left shark, the one who went rogue and danced to his own crazy beat, who stole the show. So don’t ever be a conformist for convenience’s sake. Be the left shark.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

…the left shark…<\/em><\/p>\n

I remember Wellesley High School English teacher David McCullough, Jr. who caused a bit of a social media ruckus last year when he encouraged students to not think of themselves more highly than they ought. He added: \u201cIf you\u2019ve learned anything in your years here I hope it\u2019s that education should be for, rather than material advantage, the exhilaration of learning.\u00a0 You\u2019ve learned, too, I hope, as Sophocles assured us, that wisdom is the chief element of happiness.\u00a0 (Second is ice cream\u2026\u00a0 just an fyi)\u00a0 I also hope you\u2019ve learned enough to recognize how little you know\u2026 how little you know now\u2026 at the moment\u2026 for today is just the beginning.\u00a0 It\u2019s where you go from here that matters.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

(Yes, where they go from here matters…) <\/em><\/p>\n

I must say, I\u2019m not as keen on candidates or in-office politicians making commencement speeches. There\u2019s too much political posturing and underlying motives that seem less than transparently stated. Something about an Ellen DeGeneres just feels a little more refreshing.<\/p>\n

Perhaps my favorite borrowed words, though, come not from the well-deserving, revered lists — lists that always include the speeches of Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, and Steve Jobs. I\u2019m instead drawn to the words of a cartoonist, poet, and children\u2019s author — words most likely never penned with graduation in mind. I love the words of Shel Silverstein…<\/p>\n

I think of Silverstein\u2019s words as my son\u2019s ceremony nears. I think of them as I reflect upon the past 18 years… where my son has succeeded… where he\u2019s seemingly failed… where he\u2019s learned and grown and picked himself right back up again. I think about my role as a parent… where I\u2019ve succeeded… where I\u2019ve seemingly failed… and where I have learned and grown and picked myself up again. I think about the humbling, awesome responsibility of parenting — and of any who consistently invests in the younger generation.<\/p>\n

One aspect which has been clear since birth is that the day would come when these grads would embrace their independence, leave our homes, and become adults. We\u2019ve had the privilege of sharing in their journey — albeit sometimes, no doubt, even getting in the way. We have been their bridge from birth \u2018til now. Hence, the words of Silverstein…<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bridge will only take you halfway there, to those mysterious lands you long to see. Through gypsy camps and swirling Arab fair, and moonlit woods where unicorns run free. So come and walk awhile with me and share the twisting trails and wondrous worlds I’ve known. But this bridge will only take you halfway there. The last few steps you have to take alone.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

The twisting trails together have been a privilege. It\u2019s time for our grads to take the next few steps… maybe even like the left shark… dancing to a crazy beat all their own.<\/p>\n

Respectfully…<\/p>\n

AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As we move closer to the more formal pomp and circumstance coming this weekend — and prior to posting our second \u201cNote to the Graduate\u201d — I thought it may be interesting to observe the encouragement others have offered this special time of year. What words do people say to the young men and women … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “forks, sharks & bridges”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[519],"class_list":["post-4788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-event","tag-class-of-2015"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4788"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4795,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4788\/revisions\/4795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}