I wanted to offer something in this week’s editorial for
the 2018 graduates. I thought and I thought and couldn’t come up with an
inkling of wisdom that I could offer the students as they begin their new
journeys.
Until that is, I was writing the article about videographer,
Bill Blood who combines his love of videography and science education by travelling
to Hawaii to capture and teach about geological formations. While writing it, I
was inspired to research what the Hawaiian culture might perceive about the current
erupting Kilauea volcano and the lessons some people in Hawaii might take from it. Perhaps in
understanding how they learn from nature, I could reach my goal of offering
something to the graduates.
In
my research, I found a travel blog writer, Avia Venefica, who stated that volcanoes offer a few
lessons that most Hawaiians take seriously. “Volcanoes represent
the upward challenge our lives sometimes present and they
remind us of the goals we aspire to reach, the journey to get there, and the
value of the climb to the top.”
In Maine, we typically align ourselves with monotheistic views, but we often also learn the values and
lesson that nature provides us. Many people experience a transcendent
connection in Maine’s natural environment, learning something personally and
profoundly while participating in a favorite activity, be it hiking, kayaking
or snowshoeing.
The
following are a few life lessons that the natural beauty of Maine can
potentially offer, not only for the 2018 graduates, but for all of us:
In
addition to the “upward challenge” analogy Venefica offers, a hike up a Maine
mountain can reflect the reality of peaks and valleys. Life is exciting and
frustrating. There are always going to be good days and bad days, but it helps
to know that everything is temporary. So, during the valley moments – just keep
chugging away as the peak moments will be arriving soon. Of course, the
opposite is also true. This keeps us humble.
Sitting
in a kayak, one can’t help but notice how adaptable the water is – how easily
the water divides and wraps itself around the kayak as it moves forward. Water
can easily skirt around any object and keep moving onward. It can teach us to
persist without struggle.
Personally,
I think snow can teach us a major life lesson about individuality. Whether you
have snowshoed or cross country skied through a deep and fresh layer of snow,
you will notice there is not a trail in front of you. You must create your own
way, your own path. In life, it can be scary to blaze new horizons. But much
like snowshoeing, you can look back from where you once stood and see how far
you’ve come.
It
is my hope that all graduates will one day look back and see how far they have
travelled since 2018 – learning their own bits of wisdom along the way.
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