After spending the majority of the last four years on a college campus and emerging with a degree in May, I can proudly say that I can’t even keep track of all the useful things I learned. However, the biggest lesson was possibly tougher for me to grasp than many of my peers, and I’m still grappling with how it took me so long to see the light. No, this revelation was not how to study effectively for tests, work well in project teams, eat healthy, manage personal finances, or ace a job interview.
The biggest lesson that I learned in college was that it wasn’t just me who earned my degree, but my parents too. Without them, I couldn’t have come close to what I achieved, and no amount of thank yous will come close to doing justice. But, thank you anyway. That’s the first of many.
Having to address being financially independent for the first time in my life made me realize how many physical gifts my parents have provided me with over the years. While I try furiously to nickel and dime the world in order to save on an apartment, car, insurance, and other possessions, my parents have worked for decades to provide in every respect. And not just for me, but for my two older brothers as well. To go through college without worrying about needing scholarships, part-time work, or student loans was a blessing of incomparable value. With the freed-up mental real estate that came from not needing to focus on these, I was able to work to my fullest ability in the classroom, student organizations, and social outings. My parents’ physical support of my college dream made success possible. And I am a smarter, more responsible, healthier, and happier person for it. So, Mom and Dad, thank you for all the sacrifices you have made
But even more valuable than material support was the love and guidance my parents have given me over the last four years. Growing up in New Jersey, it wasn’t always a certainty that I would get to live out my dream of being a Longhorn at The University of Texas at Austin. Yet my parents never doubted me, and encouraged me to chase down the best education possible, even if it meant leaving home to do so. After leaving the family nest, I never doubted that I was only a phone call away from my mom or dad; this was soon proven when call after call was picked up by one of my parents when their sometimes less-than-bright son couldn’t work an iron or a credit card payment. My parents’ trust in me was truly inspiring, and the homesickness and doubt that accompanied me to Austin to begin my freshman year were replaced by confidence and an eternal appreciation when I departed from Austin after the conclusion of my senior year. So Mom and Dad, thank you for always being there for me and helping me live out my dreams during college: the best four years of my life so far.
My parents deserved more thank yous than they got from me during the last four years. Something on this scale would have been more fitting. But given that my artistic talents rival that of the common traffic cone, I’ll stick to wrapping it up with words.
Mom and Dad, my college experience wasn’t just mine, it was yours. It started from a young boy’s dream of attending UT-Austin and ended with a young man living that dream by graduating from UT-Austin with a college degree. But what I’ll remember more than that degree? That this wouldn’t have happened without you, and I’ll love you both forever for it and so, so, so, so much more.
Thank you.
