It’s the time of year when we celebrate our young adults going out into the world. My daughter is graduating from high school this weekend and has been accepted into the nursing program at the University of Wyoming. She has enough credits to be able to enter college as a sophomore.
In her school, the top 10-15 students all have 4.0 GPA’s. The amount of advanced placement classes determines the final ranking. She will graduate 5th in her class of 150 students.
I’m excited for her, but a little stressed myself. Somehow, I got roped into giving the graduation speech. The kids nominate, then vote on who they want to be their speaker. I guess I drew the short straw. It would be a lot easier if I could talk about cows!
One of my high school teachers shared a famous Mark Twain saying with me when I graduated: “Don’t let your schooling get in the way of your education.” I didn’t know what that meant at the time, but it didn’t take long to figure it out. This saying implies that schooling can even be a detriment to education. Imagine that!
I have a couple pieces of advice for parents and graduates who want to keep some sense of morals, values and health while attending college. Things to avoid – the dorms, cafeteria food, fraternities/sororities, the English department. Things to look for – a church group/Bible study, your own apartment, some open space.
For ranch kids, open space is a big deal. City life can be overwhelming. Find a local ranch where you can get away from all the noise and unwind. This was a big help for me when I was in college and turned into a good part-time job.
Dave Ramsey also recommends spending the first two years at a local community college to complete any pre-requisites while staying at home and not getting into a ton of debt. Good advice, but make sure you have a discussion about expectations with your graduate. This will avoid a lot of unnecessary arguments.
Most of all… enjoy the time you have with your kids and grandkids. They will be grown up and gone before you know it!
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