Putting Money Where My Mouth Is
I’ve mentioned, before, a young friend and her indecision over college. She’s graduated high school, yesterday or today I think, so the question is substantially less abstract now. I still think that she should do it. For me and for almost everyone I know, university education was an unbelievable chance for us to learn about ourselves, discover who we wanted to become, and grow into those frames.
I think she deserves the same chance. Really, I think that everyone deserves the same chance (that teaching urge is hard to forget), but my friend seems particularly important right now. She’s endearingly quirky and I believe she doesn’t give herself enough credit for how bright she is. Sometimes I wonder how she might change in the experience; I can’t imagine that she wouldn’t make the most of it, but how is anyone’s guess.
I’d like to meet that hypothetical future-self, whoever she might be. I bet she’d have a lot of interesting, compelling things to say.
It’s time for me to put some money where my mouth is.
This is my open gift to her, my promise before all of you. I hope you get to hold me to it.
Hi DeeDee,
Happy graduation, and happy upcoming birthday. Welcome to the start of your adult life.
I think you should go and try college for a semester. Try it on; see if it suits you; see if you can handle it. I think you’ll be surprised. It doesn’t really matter which; even community college is better than none, and you can always transfer up if you find it too easy. Just go full-time and give it your best shot. Keep in touch; let me know how you’re doing and ask if you need help.
If you can pull off that one semester, I’ll help you pay for it. After your finals are done, I’ll drive down to meet you, take you out to lunch, and write you out a check for three hundred and fifty dollars. Call it a delayed scholarship. If you go to a CSU it’s a good start; if you go to a community college, it pays for your tuition, fees, and bus pass, then gets you started on your books. You can use it to keep going, or pay off what you’ve done and stop. I believe in you that much, and that’s my gift to you.
You have one year.
Please don’t waste it.
-Adrian
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