June, Mid-year Course Corrections!

June, the month that spring dissolves into the heat of summer. It is a time when people have traditionally set new course changes in their lives, like marriage, graduation and the launching of adventurous vacations and new careers.

Last month,The First Saturday in May I wrote about three people whom I acknowledged for reaching their goals to graduate from high school or college and be prepared to go onto their next great adventure. They represent the millions of people, young and old, who are joining them this month to take the next step in their lives.

Yesterday I watched my youngest son graduate from high school. His graduating class was made up of young people whose fore bearers had come here from every continent. When I graduated many uncounted moons ago, the surnames were mostly European and the faces white and black. Today, my son's class was a veritable role call of the global family with one thing in common, they were Americans graduating and going forth to set individual courses on to their next goal.

This month, another of the people I've written about, graduated and this winter will enter the Masters of History program at a well known university. She works as a manager in a major company, so the natural choice should have been an MBA program. Instead, she followed her dream to be a historian, and hopefully a professor, in order to make a real difference in the lives of others. I know how much she agonized over this choice, her family said take the conservative course, but she followed her heart and chose the path that she wanted to travel. I know that someday her name will be on the lips of students, as someone who made a difference in their lives.

Lastly, another whom I wrote about last month. She overcame many hardships to graduate with a degree in International Business. The road her family traveled to place her at this threshold was perilous. She persisted and graduated last month. Too this moment, she is the most focused and disciplined person I have ever known. Today, she is fulfilling a dream to travel and see the world. It is the huge course change for her to leave her family and travel overseas to study global business practices. I know that she is having a blast learning and thinking about everything she encounters. She did not label her Myspace headline "metecognition" for not, she is the epitome of that word.

These three, represent the millions who this month are sailing off on new courses. I publicly affirm that I am immensely proud of these three. My contributions to their decisions were minuscule. They each share the same trait, that of following their passion and preparing for careers they chose because of their deep interest, not the interest of their parents or friends. As they continue their separate journey's I will watch with interest and pride as they assume their role in defining the future.