THE LIST: The finish line is also the starting line

I loved to see Nodaway Valley’s Class of 2025 choose the quote they did as their class quote. It says, “The future depends on what you do today.” The quote may be attributed to Mahatma Ghandi, but it’s a good one for us today as well.

This year’s senior classes at Nodaway Valley and Orient-Macksburg can look back and have much to celebrate.

Not only did they survive the demands of students in today’s world — many of them had a job, or two or three, and they were involved in many school and other activities — they faced and weathered some unique adversity. While they were in middle school, we had the pandemic, which threw the entire world a curveball. There are other events, like the tornado in Greenfield, that placed undue burden on us all. These seniors weren’t exempt from that. I also think of Orient-Macksburg’s seniors having the weight of being that school’s last graduating class on their shoulders. They’re wearing it with grace!

I helped cover Nodaway Valley’s home track and field meet awhile back when they hosted the entire Pride of Iowa Conference. For most of the races, the starting line is also the finish line. That’s a good way to think about graduating. While these seniors can be proud of reaching this finish line, it’s also the starting line to what is next for them. I know they will bear well the burden and responsibility of making a difference in the world and abiding by the Nodaway Valley class quote as they prepare for future success.

All of this should be taken with a reminder to not take ourselves too seriously — to take time for ourselves sometimes. We can’t do it all on our own and have to realize we weren’t made to do it all. We have to remember the wise Red Green’s words, who said “we’re all in this together.”

Congratulations to the seniors!