Graduation commencement speeches are typically full of cheesy cliches, jokes that you politely chuckle at, and inspirational “welcome to the real world” words of wisdom from a random, credentialed somebody that you won’t recall the name of tomorrow.
But sometimes, a few of those words stick. A few of those words you put in your pocket and carry with you.
I wasn’t graduating anything this weekend, but I attended a graduation, and as the speaker walked through his story of growing up and figuring things out, making sure to fill his quota of bad jokes and cliches, he said one thing that stuck. One thing that I’ve been thinking about ever since.
It was the simple idea that once in a while, maybe a little more often than that, you must stop and say to yourself, “It doesn’t get any better than this”.
“This” can mean a lot of things. Your job. Your relationship. Your bank account. It’s all of that, and then some.
It’s made up of little moments. Sitting around a local pub with friends drinking craft beer. Finishing a 13-mile run. Setting up shop next to the fireplace at a local coffee house listening to Jason Mraz. Awkwardly spooning your wife on a Twin-size air mattress that is entirely too small for 2 adults to be even remotely comfortable while you’re visiting friends in Minneapolis (okay, maybe it does get a little better than that).
We get so caught up in the rat race of life that we forget to recognize where we are, where we’ve come from, and where we’re going.
You’ve done a lot. You’re doing a lot. You’re going to do even more. If you’re reading this, you’re more privaleged and fortunate than you realize. You’ve accomplished more than you give yourself credit for.
When things are tough, the inevitable thought of “It must get better than this” creeps in.
But at the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, during that moment of spooning your wife where she fits, somehow, perfectly in your nook, even in the most uncomfortable situation possible, let one thought sweep over you. Let it provide solace. Let it put things in perspective. Let if fill your heart and your mind.
“It doesn’t get any better than this.”