Accomplishments, potential celebrated at graduations

It's commencement time in Southeast Missouri.

Whether that means graduating from high school or college, it's one of life's great milestones. It means much energy has been spent and much hope exerted in the pursuit of what we all ultimately want from life.

And what might that be? It's simply finding a place, a role, in the grand scheme of things. An important, enriching opportunity to be -- to become -- the people we're meant to be, and to achieve the dreams we and our families have cherished since we came into the world.

That's what the caps and gowns are for, after all. They're symbols. They are the trappings of a solemn, public acknowledgment that we have arrived at a distinct juncture in life.

The ceremony itself is a chance to celebrate the passing of a threshold we hope will bring us closer to the horizons we long to reach, whether earning potential or job security; quiet, anonymous labor in a larger cause; or fame and fortune.

No one ever really knows what will happen in the days, months and years after mounting the stage and accepting a diploma. Sometimes the most promising students go on to live modest lives. Others end up doing things their teachers and fellow students never would have expected of them. Sometimes we even get to boast that we knew this or that person when. Sometimes, we are the person others claim to have known in the distant, misty past that, for you, hasn't yet unfolded.

That, graduates, is the beauty -- and challenge -- of what you face right now. This is the time in your lives when you will step purposefully toward the unknown. It's a scary step. But it's also an exhilarating one. It means you are considered ready for the task.

You -- and only you -- are in charge of your destiny. Your path will cross with others whose influence may affect you; you will experience joys and sorrows. You will have fortunate years and lean ones. You will be bitterly disappointed and even elated at points along the way. All of the above is part of life.

But never lose sight of the fact that your choices, your reactions to circumstances -- whatever they might be, whatever they might become -- will inform your life's journey. Make it a good one.

Nearly 1,400 students at Southeast Missouri State University will graduate this weekend. Thousands more will graduate from area high schools in the coming days and weeks.

We extend our very best wishes to the class of 2015.