Graduating is a big achievement under
any circumstances. Some of you have had
to overcome serious obstacles along the
way, whether it was an illness, or a
parent losing a job, or living in a
neighborhood where people too often
count you out. Then, just as you're about
to celebrate having made it through, just
as you've been looking forward to proms
and senior night's, graduation ceremonies
and let's face it a whole bunch of
parties, the world is turned upside down
by a global pandemic. But what remains
true is that your graduation marks your
passage into adulthood,
the time when you begin to take charge
of your own life. It's when you get to
decide what's important to you, the kind
of career you want to pursue, who you
want to build a family with, the values
you want to live by - and given the
current state of the world that may be
kind of scary. But I hope it's also
inspiring. With all the challenges this
country faces right now, nobody can tell
you, "no, you're you're too young to understand,"
or, "this is how it's always been done,"
because with so much uncertainty, with
everything suddenly up for grabs, this is
your generation's world to shape.
