When I graduated from university, I remember hearing others speak of the sense of accomplishment they felt in finally receiving “that piece of paper” at the end of four years. To me, the idea of the paper was secondary. I felt proud of what I had accomplished, but not because the dean handed me a certificate.
To reach my lifelong goal of becoming a teacher, my university education was not optional. Therefore, I did not feel like a diploma was a feather in my cap, but rather a necessary step in pursuing my career goal. The completion of my degrees, while something to be proud of – and relieved about – represented much more.
Intrinsic motivation had prompted me to devote blood, sweat, and tears to my studies. My family had given time, money, and support to see me through. School had helped to prepare me for life, and no paper could ever do justice in representing all that that preparation entailed.
In fact, my elementary school graduation was more emotional for me. I had spent more than two-thirds of my life in a tight-knit community – something I will very likely never be able to say again in this lifetime. Leaving the only school I had ever known was big deal for me, but it was also a given.
We are blessed to live in a country where an elementary school education is a right and an assumption. This does not mean that it should be taken for granted, since many people in the world – especially young girls – still do not have access to an education. This is also not to say that it is easy; academic skills and social navigation are often hard. But, at the end of it all, elementary school is really just a starting point.
There is a good reason that graduation ceremonies are often called “commencements.” These rites of passage are not meant to represent finish lines, but rather beginnings. At a commencement, while we celebrate the completion of a milestone, that milestone is merely a necessary step for what lies ahead in life’s journey.
At graduations or commencements, it is natural to focus on what the actual day represents. We think of diplomas, awards, achievements, successes, knowledge, and experiences. Each of these things bears some importance; however, the most important aspects of life are defined not by “what,” but by “who.” Who have you been? Who are you now? Who has supported you along the way? Who has become a lifelong friend? Who has blessed you just for this season? Who will you become?
In my experience, real education has been found in life. My formal education taught me what I needed to do in terms of organizing, budgeting, articulating, and teaching. Life has taught me who I am, who I am grateful to, who I serve and, most importantly, Who created me and calls me to my vocation.
Many people hang diplomas in prominent locations, which is wonderful. Personally, however, I let my university diplomas collect dust in a closet for many years. I thought of them only as the papers I needed to get a job because everything of importance that they represented I already carried within me.
Recently I decided to hang them in my laundry room. Yes, my laundry room – a place of humble service where I recognize that all I have ever learned in school was really just a stepping stone in how to deal with the dirty laundry of life. Life is not about fancy clothes and applause, certificates and awards, speeches and parties. All of these things are wonderful, to be sure, but they are bonuses. Real life is our foundation, and it can be complicated; at times, in all honesty, life can be a little messy.
To the graduates of 2021: you have already experienced “messy”! You have overcome many challenges that previous generations have never experienced. You have learned remotely, you have learned in masks, you have learned in cohorts, you have been deprived of traditional events you had looked forward to throughout your school years, and you survived!
You don’t need to hang your diploma or certificate in your laundry room, but wherever you choose to keep this document, never lose sight of the many whos it represents, as you ultimately step forward into who God calls you to be.
