We’re soaring, flying!

There’s not a star in heaven that we can’t reach

I had a completely different blog post planned for today, but I just saw a live adaptation of High School Musical and I am inspired. This blog post is just a short written monologue for my fellow classmates who are also moments away from submitting their final assignment and are ready to break free…

Here we are, the final push. Moments away from pressing submit and starting our new lives. We all grew up watching high school and college shows with the grand finale being around graduation, but they often omit the days before we walk across the stage.

Before we put on our cap and gown, we are given a couple months where we don’t have to do anything. If you’re like me, you might feel the pressure to always be doing something, achieving something, working towards something. But I believe there is a reason for this break (besides the fact that our work is being marked).

Before we step into our next chapter, and break free, it’s important to sit in the moment we are in. To just exist for a bit. For the past three years we had something to work towards, something preoccupying our minds. We could be out with friends but thinking about an essay. Or planning a holiday while a deadline is weighing on us. Between, SATs, GCSEs, A-Levels and our degree, when is the last time you could just exist without preparing for anything.

Moreover, when is the next time we will be able to do so. I expect like myself, you hope to get a good paying job after uni, which means solid working hours. What comes next after a big career? Marriage? Kids? The rat race, doesn’t really end. But these next two months are a sweet spot for you to inhale and exhale. For some the next time will be retirement.

Aswan Magumbe, CSM alumni told me something that stuck with me: when you graduate you are not unemployed, you are a graduate. Give yourself grace to be a graduate.

So I leave you with that same advice. You will be soaring, flying, there’s not a star in heaven that you can’t reach! I want you to reach for the top, fulfil your dreams, chase down your goals. But I also want you to give yourself permission to rest. You are allowed to pause. You do not have to have it all figured out. You might not know what you are going to do tomorrow, but isn’t that exciting?

(Note to self)