Hey You!
Congratulations! You did it!
Whether it be junior high, high school or college, you worked hard for that diploma. You clawed and scraped through some boring lessons and managed to take down the super hard classes with all the strength you could muster up just for that piece of paper. You took test after test just to be able to throw your cap in the air with the hundreds of classmates surrounding you one last time. Late night study seshes, weird schedules, long group projects — you conquered them all.
And you're done.
For now.
All the memories, laughs, tears and smiles are stored up in the pages you've written. A new chapter awaits, all you got to do now is turn the page.
So, my one piece of advice for you is this: turn the page. And when I say turn the page, I don’t mean slowly turn it. Take it all in one last time and turn the page briskly. Like ripping off a Band-Aid.
You’re confused why this is my piece of advice but let’s face it.
Sometimes turning the page is the hardest part.
For months, you wanted it all over. At times, it was more stressful than enjoyable, trust me, I get that! Getting the opportunity to move on is exactly what you needed.
You've been asking for this, and here it is. Now do me a favor and don’t look back. Don’t regret not doing this or not going there. You did what you did and it happened.
So, go live it now. Starting a new chapter does not necessarily mean you get to start over and fresh. In a sense, yes, you’ll have memories and stories from the past that you shouldn’t ever forget, but it’s time to start again. You can’t live in your youngster days. It’s time to take on the new days.
It’s time to seize the day, every day. Don’t let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game. You were once a young kid with a super cool lunch box and a bright soul filled with big dreams. Go make them happen. Spend each day making that super sweet kid proud. Little you had a dream, and it’s time for you to go capture it.
It will be weird turning the page. No one loves change and the strange period of time it takes to adjust to change. It’s the state of being uncomfortable that makes people squirm and hide.
Turn the page. Embrace the uncomfortable. Everything will soon fall into place. Your schedule, your great new friends, your laughter, your life.
Graduation brings a lot of letting go. The change is coming whether you want it to or not so let it happen. It’s like the movie "Finding Nemo" when Marlin and Dory are too busy fighting the current and Squirt and Crush the turtles give them advice for getting to his destination.
Something along the lines of Squirt saying “Good afternoon. We're gonna have a great jump today. OK, first crank a hard cutback as you hit the wall. There's a screaming bottom curve, so watch out. Remember: rip it, roll it and punch it.”
Which makes no sense, but that’s how these next few months of life are going to be.
It won’t make sense but then again at times, nothing makes sense. Don’t fight against it. Just live it. Do what’s right and dream big.
Whether you're taking a gap year, going out into the real world to get a job or going to more schooling, give it all you got and don't look back. Give it 110 percent and stay healthy.
Like totally dude, now give me some fin.
And go get em.
No mercy out there when it comes to following your dreams. With failure comes the will to get back up, brush off your shoulders, and sooner or later work hard and succeed.
The world is your oyster.
