There is a good reason they call these ceremonies 'commencement exercises'. Graduation is not the end, it's the beginning.
~ Orrin Hatch
My friend Cindy graduated this morning with a BA. Like me, Cindy courageously went back to school to complete a degree she once started in another lifetime. She was younger and single when she started university. Now she is a busy career woman, married with three children, and fostering a fourth. I admire her—she certainly is an inspiration. I was busy too but I only had my own schedule to manage, not five others.
Tonight, her family, and that of her niece’s who also graduated today, hosted a celebration to recognize the hard work and determination she and her niece showed. I think marking milestones is a crucial passage. If the event slides by unnoticed, the lack of praise and appreciation for it sinks into a soul and festers. There were lots of happy faces tonight to honour Cindy.
As we shared a quiet moment away from the crowd in the kitchen, she admitted that the degree had come at a cost…a cost I understood. The time with family and friends cannot be retrieved. She is proud, and rightfully so, of her accomplishment though. Life is a balancing act and regrets are not worth the drama.
Now it is on to a year or two to recuperate for her and then to decide about a Master’s degree. She will be great at whatever she does. This is not an end, but a beginning of a different journey for her. How wonderful to witness!
Peace,
Suzanne
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