As a self-proclaimed lover of life, it is difficult for me to say goodbye to certain stages of my existence. All seasons of life are good in their own way, full of adventure and experiences specific to that season. Similarly, all seasons of life have profound lows that will only be found in that stage, teaching you lessons that can only be taught at that moment. I will only ever be a college student for 4 years. I will only ever be a senior for one year. I will only live today once. Truly, life is a pilgrimage full of bittersweet goodbyes and beautiful new beginnings. After all, we are humans, "walking each other home." Growing up is unavoidable, but beautifully natural. We can either fear the future, miss the past, or accept the journey of life with "mirth and laughter" (Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice), We cannot stay in the same place forever...and as a graduating senior, this is both tragic and beautiful. I cannot wait to see what the next adventure has in store for both you and me. Reading quotes like these always helps remind me that I am the clay. I will mold myself into a beautiful new piece of art in every season of life. The molding often hurts but soon will come a new and exciting fixture. How glorious is that??
1. "Love sets us freeeeee, love is not a grip. All of us purpossed vessels, trekking adventure's trip!" — Tess Guinery, The Apricot Memoirs
2. "I am merely at the midway point in the novel of my own life. On around page 250 of a 500-page tale, maybe even 200. There's no reason why the next 250, 300, or even 350 pages will not be far more exciting than the first half." — Ray Smith, The Magnolia That Bloomed Unseen
3. "As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so life well used brings happy death." — Leonardo Da Vinci
4. "If things seem under control, you are just not going fast enough." — Mario Andretti
5. "A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are built for." — John A. Shedd
6. "It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life and in change there is power." — Alan Cohen
7. "The only question in life is whether or not you are going to answer a hearty 'YES!' to your adventure." — Joseph Campbell
If you have read any of my other articles, then you know that I love the number "Seven." In Hebrew, Seven translates into "fullness," "contentedness," or "nothing can be added unto it." As the story of creation goes, God created the world in 6 days and, on the 7th day— the Sabbath — He "rested." In imitation, the Jewish people did the same. In many ways, it seems like that 7th day would be the "perfect" or most complete day. However, you cannot arrive on the 7th day without the first 6 days. It takes every day to culminate a week— to make it complete. Truly, God's fullness isn't just there on particular or "special" days but woven into every day. I aim to live my whole life with this outlook. No matter where you are, Christ promises life abundant in the mountains and valleys of life. Here's to the adventure of life!!
