On My Soapbox

Civil rights leader Dr. Benjamin Mays said, “You are what you aspire to be and not what you now are; you are what you do with your mind, and you are what you do with your youth. It is not your environment, it is you – the quality of your minds, the integrity of your souls, and the determination of your will – that will decide your future and shape your lives."

That statement is powerful to me, especially in this time of uncertainty. As an almost college graduate (54 days) I am beginning to understand this quote even more because there is this sense of anxiety and fear among many of my friends. It’s this feeling in the pit of the stomach that makes them want to give up even thinking about the future and just settle in as a permanent resident in college.

Even though the thought of my friends living the dorm life at 80 years-old makes me actually laugh out loud, I want them and other soon-to-be college graduates to understand there are reasons to be optimistic about leaving college.

I think the world is primed and ready to be molded and my class has a unique opportunity to shape it. No, it’s not going to be easy. Fear and anxiety will always exist, but like Mays said it’s what we aspire to do and our determination that will shape our lives, ultimately shaping the world.

I ask you to stand on my soapbox for a while and reflect on Mays statement. At the end of the day it’s the attitudes we choose that determine who we are and how successful we will be.