Published: May 06, 2008 05:11 pm            

McDONALD: What’s good for the grad

It has been quite a few years since I graduated from high school, 34 to be exact, so long that I can't really remember all of the feelings I had at the time. All I knew was that I wanted to go on to college and then see the world beyond Southern Indiana. While I have traveled extensively, met a lot of interesting people and done a lot of interesting things, my journey is not complete nor is anyone else’s as we are a constant work in progress.

This is my annual column of best wishes and advice to graduates, mainly the senior high school students that I teach. The advice can be applied not only to them but also to me. I have chosen this year to use quotes from Mark Twain the American humorist and author as they are clever but also pointed.

“I can live for two months on a good compliment.”

Do you know that special feeling you get when someone gives you a compliment? In your dealings with people, friends, and family, never pass an opportunity to deliver a sincere compliment.

“A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.”

Approving of your own actions and thoughts and words is an ongoing goal. No matter how old you are you are always susceptible to the pressures of peers, fear, failure and the pressure to succeed by someone else's standards. Sometimes our very strengths lead us into a zealousness that can lead to overconfidence and mistakes. Liking and approving of yourself is especially hard when you have taken some knocks and disappointments. When disappointment comes, take time to reflect on what went wrong and evaluate if you can improve.

“A man is never more truthful than when he acknowledges himself a liar.”

In a competitive society there is pressure to make yourself look good or keep yourself from looking bad. Lying springs often times from knowing we have made a mistake and feeling the shame and guilt that comes from that mistake. It is OK to make a mistake. We all do it, just acknowledge it when it happens and move on. Yes, at 52 I still make mistakes, and sometimes they are very hard to admit. Those of you that are Biblical know this, pride goeth before a fall.

“A man’s character may be learned from the adjectives which he habitually uses in conversation.”

You did not go through 12 years of education to speak like a street thug. I often wonder what has happened to the English language. Perhaps we should be like the French and guard the language like a precious gem. Just compare the size of the English dictionary and the French and you will know what I mean. The point is derivations of the F word have worked their way into common language under the guise of freaking or fricking that is only a mask. Guard your use of language like a gem.

“A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read.”

You have an education and a mind that must be exercised. Devote yourself to reading on a regular basis. Read at least one non-fiction book a month for the sake of learning something new. Yes there is cable and satellite television with terrific educational programming. But with reading a book you are an active participant and increasing your vocabulary beyond a base level.

“Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often.”

Make it a point to practice the things that you say you do. People pay much more attention to your actions than your words. If your positive actions serve as an example to others then your actions speak. Also, if you say you are going to do something, do it.

“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.”

It is perfectly fine to be angry about something or someone. It is what you do with that anger that matters. If you hold on to it and hold a grudge then it will eat you up and contaminate your thinking. Life is too short to hold grudges. Learn to forgive others so that you may move on with your life.

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”

Too often we may feel that life is unfair or we are owed something because we didn’t have the best start in life. There is absolutely nothing that you can do about the past, but you are in control of your future and what you do with it. Have a dream, hold on to it and define measurable goals to achieve that dream. As a matter of fact have a couple of dreams in life and set goals to achieve several.

“Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”

Through example and teaching from before kindergarten, you know how to identify the right thing to do. It is that nagging feeling in your gut that directs you what to do when you want to do something else, mainly something easier or quicker or sometimes less humiliating. Do the right thing.

It has been my distinct honor to teach my seniors for two of their four years of classes in high school. Some of them I coached in cross country and golf. I have seen their triumphs and their failures and most of the time they have righted themselves back on course. I will miss them all greatly.

Good luck wherever your path takes you in life and keep re-evaluating goals.

Tim McDonald can be reached at timothy.mcdonald@agsfaculty.indwes.edu

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.