Everyone who manages to graduate from college knows exactly what they're going to do with the rest of their lives right after graduation, right? Like many assumptions, however, this assumption can be very far from the reality of many graduating seniors. The hard truth is that many young college graduates are just as clueless about their future plans as they were when they graduated from high school.
The Ghost of Christmas Past
Every person who graduated from high school has been asked the dreaded question at least a hundred times by friends and family: "So, now that you're off to college, what's your major?" Is it any wonder that these very words strike fear and insecurity in thousands of high school graduates annually? If every responsible adult could manage to remember what it was like when these very same words were spoken to them and elicited discomfort and maybe shame, then maybe the habit as currently practiced by adults will fade into the annuals of history.
A Real Life Story
Once upon a time, a young lady graduated from high school and headed off to college. During her junior year, the young lady decided to join the Peace Corps. The announcement about her future plans to her family was not well received. in fact, the news devastated her family and their pain eventually turned to anger. The young lady's parents wanted their jewel to either go on to law school, or to at least find a real job and not waste her time working in a "non-paying service job."
It's obvious that the young lady was clueless about her future. Since she was unable to garner clear vision about her future, she decided that she could at least make a contribution to others by donating her time and her knowledge to better the lives of others while she searched to find out who she was and where she should direct her energies towards a solid life plan.
A Possible Answer
For all soon-to-be college graduates, here is a note from Steve Jobs: "You cannot connect the dots of your life looking forward, you can only connect them looking backward. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever."
Sometimes, all the pieces of the puzzle of your life don't fall into place just when you want them or need them to. Life for each of us is a puzzle and sometimes exactly where the pieces should fit are easy to identify. On the other hand, certain puzzle pieces closely resembles other pieces and finding exactly where they should fit is a difficult and illusive task.
Even if you have recently been diagnosed with a fatal disease, you still have the right to figure out what it is that will bring happiness into your life. You cannot find out what will bring you happiness if you rely solely on other people's advice. You are the only person that is fully in charge of your choices because the quality of your happiness rests solely in your heart.
Allene E. Swienckowski - I am passionate about completing my first book. I have been published twice in the Los Angeles Times newspaper. My day job, to keep food ...
