Saving the World

My daughter Jamie graduated from The Ohio State University this month with her degree in Public Health. Yep, she’s a Buckeye! While she loves the school, in truth I honestly think it wouldn’t have made a large difference where she attended. Jamie would have taken what she needed and wanted from any institution.

Don’t get the wrong idea. She’s not demanding or pushy; far from it. Her faults might include not being sufficiently assertive sometimes. It’s a minor issue that many people have. Some don’t think it’s a fault. They’re probably right.

My point, however, is that while she’s not demanding or pushy, she is determined and persistent.  As Calvin Coolidge said, “Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”*

She usually won’t go through an obstacle, but she will arrive at her destination, however long the road.  In almost every case that place is where she intended, but if not, she’ll still find good things about it. Next highway? Graduate school for Epidemiology.

One of her goals is to save the world. She never stated this to me, but it’s quite evident. It’s also naïve in the way that young twenty-somethings often are. Still, she has a very good head, and she continues to better understand the reality about a lot of the world’s problems.  During a recent trip to Ghana, she learned a lesson in helping people in a way that’s sustainable. Teaching fishing versus giving fish.

She and I disagree politically on many things. Yet at our hearts, we both know how important it is to help others, keep a clean sandbox, and build for the future.

Jamie will help save the world. We all can.


*"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." -- Calvin Coolidge

Not complete failures as parents

I've been meaning to write this for quite awhile. My daughter Jamie is one of the brightest people I know. Parental bias abounds, but being valedictorian of her high school and earning scholarships to cover a large majority of her university tuition are pretty good pieces of objective evidence.

What most recently impressed me about her, however, is her in-her-bones understanding of how life most often works. Here's the story:

Several months ago she told us about a conversation with one of her friends. They were discussing college and what "everyone" was doing to prepare for the BIG CHANGE. My daughter asked her friend what scholarships she'd applied for so far. (Jamie has probably written three dozen essays for different applications.) The answer was along the lines of, "Not much. Something good will come along."

Jamie was aghast. In the retelling she said to us, "Doesn't she know that good things don't just land on you? You have to make good things happen!"

I've rarely been more proud of her, nor more pleased with Mom and Dad.