Cap and Gown

We should not fear death, any more than a child should fear puberty- but we do, and we will. It is the unknown, and the unknown (even if you are a believer) is a frightening thing. Growing up is something all children want to do, but the teenage years can be awkward, scary and "final" feeling. It is almost like a death- the death of childhood, of youth, of perceived innocence - but is also like rebirth. We go through a very strange time and begin to come out the other side an adult- more complex, more mature, more real. The changing time was necessary to get to something else, what we'd always wanted and longed for as children. Perhaps it is better we should see it as the great "graduation", of walking across the field- a ceremony that may be tearfully sad, but one that must take place in order for real life to begin.