Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Just A Thought April 20, 2009

"We have not passed that subtle line between childhood and adulthood until we move from the passive voice to the active voice -- that is, until we have stopped saying ''It got lost,'' and say, ''I lost it.'' "

I had the privilege the other day of attending a graduation. It wasn't a typical graduation in that it wasn't an elementary, middle, or high school graduation. It was not even a college graduation. It was a group of fathers graduating from a program designed to help men become better fathers. When I first heard of program, I wasn't impressed. As a single mother of four small children, I suppose I was bitter. I felt like I was being asked to praise these men for choosing to do what they are supposed to be doing. As I sat in the ceremony however, my hard heart began to soften. I found myself with tears in my eyes as these men spoke. Here were men of all ages from all walks of life with one common goal in mind: becoming a better man. As one gentleman so eloquently put it, in order for them to become better men, they had to first learn what a man was. It hit me in that instant that so many of us are walking through life trying to better ourselves but we're unsuccessful because we have no model of what we're supposed to be. I thank God for blessing people with the vision and resources to not only create, but to operate initiatives such as this. We are all students in some shape, fashion, or form. I've been in the presence of some highly decorated graduates from some of this country's most prestigious institutions, but have never felt as proud as I felt that afternoon. No matter what anyone tells you, life is the most prestigious institution of them all and each and every one of us is blessed beyond measure to be enrolled. The question is: What's your major?

"A child becomes an adult when he realizes that he has a right not only to be right but also to be wrong."

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