If I had to tell the graduates something

So I have been back in my hometown of Tyrone for the past couple days for my youngest brother's graduation. I have sat through a number of graduation-related ceremonies and celebrations. I have heard all sorts of advice from older, wiser kids and parents to the graduating students. I have heard valedictorian speeches, salutatorian speeches, teacher speeches, preacher speeches and just about everything in between. I don't know what I would have said at my high school graduation had I been able to give a speech. Asking a high school student to give their classmates a speech filled with words of wisdom is like asking the blind to lead the blind. We don't know anything when we graduate high school. Hell, I still don't know that much and I'm pushing a quarter of a century here.

All these speeches got me to thinking about what I would tell my child if they were graduating. What speech would I make were I in the position my parents were? I don't know exactly what the most important tidbit of information or advice is in successfully navigating the big bad unbearably difficult and delightfully challenging task that is real life. I really don't. But I think, if I were to give people advice it'd go something like this:

Where you are is never going to be the same. The geography will never be the same. The hangouts will change, the mall will change, there will be more buildings, the bars that used to be cool will close, the restaurant that used to have the best food will now suck. The roads will be busier, there will be less trees, bigger houses, more grocery stores. That quaint backroad will be lined with neighborhoods. Life changes, and so do the places we live.

The people will never be the same. Most people will have left what used to be "home" whether that be your hometown or your college town. The people that are still there will not be the same as they were when you used to hang out with them. They will have jobs, and things to do, and maybe a husband or wife and some kids. They'll be living with someone, or they'll be on their way out of town. They'll have a great job, or a deadend job, or they'll be working the same job they were when you left, they'll just hate it a lot more. The people you used to love will have changed. They may have changed for the better, they may have changed for the worse, but they'll be different-I guarantee it. Mostly though, they'll just be gone for better places and bigger things.

The time will never be the same. Right now, right at this moment-well I don't know. The moment is fleeting. It doesn't seem like it is. It seems like high school, or undergrad, or the summer, or law school or whatever it may be-they seem like they last forever. It seems like you have months and years ahead of you to enjoy these "moments" in your life-but they are fleeting. And to top it all off, they don't seem all that cool at the time, but trust me, they are.

I wouldn't tell people to "cherish these moments" or to "make these friends golden" or whatever the hell all those cliches are. I think I'd just tell people to enjoy it, because you really can't go back. Things change and things change quickly. Instead of worrying about having a job, constantly worrying about your grades just enjoy it. Just take some time to sit back and realize what you've got-and that's a shitload of time to have a lot of fun. Try and be good. Try not to hurt anyone too bad. Try not to hurt yourself. Don't hurt your family. Don't fuck with people's heads. Don't screw up your grades too badly. Don't drink too much. But hell, drink, have fun, enjoy your friends while they are who they are. Because they are going to change. They are going to move. Above all though, it'll be you who changes, not anyone else. Life is fleeting. The good and the bad fade quickly. Just focus on the good, at least for right now in your life. At least before you have responsibilities like clients, and kids, and husbands and wives. Just focus on the good while it's still easy. Enjoy.

Lyrics
"Don't talk, just listen to all the voices nature brought."
Centro-Matic