Tonight was my little brother's college graduation. At 36 years old, and 19 years after he left the halls of BHS and Central High, he walked up to the graduation platform in the gymnasium at Barstow Community College and walked away with an AS in Welding and an AA in Humanities with the honors of PTK and Magna Cum Laude. My mother watched, while feeling grateful for her attendance, and I know my father would have been swelling with pride for his boy.
Graduations invoke the same feeling in me of watching a Broadway show, musical or ballet performance. There is a certain grandeur of the evening; you can feel the dreams and hopes filling the room and it's a reminder of things you could have been while a jab in the ribs that anything can still be attained. When I attend a show, I am captivated by all elements of the performance. I acknowledge the hard work the actors put in to learn their lines, the practicing done by the musicians, the painting and logistics of the stage crew and the stress of the director. I remember how the dancers feel, checking their costumes and make up one more time, praying they don't miss a step. I cringe for the musicians when I hear a wrong note because I have faced the same horror, praying that no one else noticed. In the end, however, there is a sense of accomplishment and swelling of pride that cannot be matched and makes knowing you will do it all again tomorrow seem less terrifying.
Each time I attend a graduation, whether it be 8th grade or college, I feed off the energy and excitement in the room; the band warming up in the back, the staff clearing the aisles for the graduates and the audience chattering in the stands. Something exciting is about to happen. I reflect back to my high school and college graduations and the college graduations of friends and other family and I can identify with what it took to get there. The homework, sacrificing what I wanted to do for what I needed to do, and reading books that I didn't like or necessarily agree with. Every action has lead the graduates to this very moment and each is overcome with a sense of pride and accomplishment that makes going on to higher learning tomorrow seem less terrifying.
Tonight, while watching and listening, I saw a Marine Officer in Dress Blues on the graduation platform sitting with the other distinguished guests and board members. I soon learned that he was Colonel Daniel Ermer, the Commencement Speaker for the evening and the Commanding Officer at MCLB Barstow. After a very lengthy introduction, he stepped up to the podium and said "I know you just listened to all my accomplishments, but don't worry about all that". He immediately had my attention. I knew he had something more to say; more than just some awards and degrees, which I will be the first to point out, were very prestigious and well deserved, and the usual “you can do it” speech. Col. Ermer began to share with the graduates the secret to life that he imparts to his Marines and civilian employees called Balance Push.
Balance Push is the art of balancing life while pushing forward; one cannot exist without the other. Balance is made up of three components; mind, body and spirit. The mind must always be striving for knowledge and stable in its thoughts. The body must be healthy and in top performing shape. The spirit, while it doesn't have to be religious spiritual, is who you know you are and keeping that alive and healthy. Col. Ermer used the analogy of a 3 legged stool, stating that if you were to stand on top of this 3 legged stool, you would have to balance carefully in order to not topple over.
Col. Ermer then said that the push is from family, friends, instructors, co-workers and others in your life who are there to push you forward to reach your goals and hold you accountable. He said "If you have come up with a plan for something, have you shared it with someone?” Col. Ermer said he tells each of his employees to run 3 miles a day. If they can’t run 3 miles a day, run 2. If they can’t run 2 miles, run 1. If they can’t run 1 mile, then walk it. He asked the question "Graduates, is this your end goal? Is this the pinnacle of your life and success?"
Col. Ermer's address left my mind reeling and my spirit was overflowing with a renewed determination for life. I realized what a gift it is for someone to ask you to hold them accountable and to push them forward towards a balanced life, which truly is attainable. I also realize how hard it is to ask for that help from someone and it should not be taken lightly nor brushed to the side.
I usually leave graduation thinking that tomorrow I will work out for 3 hours, sign up for, and complete, a Master’s program and clean out all my closets, all in one day. I end up doing none of the above. Today, though, I will park further from the store, read a new and interesting book and go through last weeks’ junk mail, while pushing forward and striving for the balance that makes me, well, me. A better me.
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