"Because when I die, buddy, you know what's going to keep me warm? That's right, those degrees."

This weekend my youngest sister graduates college. So that's a big stinkin' deal for a few reasons. I recognize the fact that graduating college is a big accomplishment that many people don't ever experience. As for myself, I have found that I get a great amount of (hidden) satisfaction when I have the opportunity to let someone know that I have indeed graduated college. And from an institution that is respectable and somewhat well-known (Sic 'em). It's a good feeling to have earned one's degree, and hopefully that will be followed by the good feeling of money in the bank and a fulfilling career. I'm still waiting for that pay off, but it's only 2 years since I left school so I'm still holding on to the idea that it will eventually happen. Let me at least have that dream.

So the thing about graduating college that makes it such a big stinkin' deal beyond getting the degree is the fact that you are now officially a part of the adult world. And it expects things from you that you haven't ever had to deal with before. Like getting your own insurance. And not wearing jeans every day. Making friends with grown-ups that are married and have children. And getting an actual occupation since you can't check the "Student" box anymore on surveys when it asks what you do. Here is the hard reality of graduating college that you didn't experience when you graduated high school:

You can't get away with anything anymore.

You can't skip work like you could skip class. You can't get away with not paying your bills like you did with not turning in a paper on time. You can't get loaded on a Tuesday night with all your friends and then sleep it off all the next day because once you get out of college, people start labeling you things like "alcoholic" instead of cheering you on as you take one more shot of Jager. That's right, my soon-to-be-an-accountable-adult friend. The reality after college is that you no longer live in a world that's wild and crazy fun, where all your best friends live within 2 miles of you, and the biggest thing you have hanging over your head is a 20 page paper for your Theories of Personality class. Instead, your friends live in Idaho and you can't decide whether or not to meet with a financial advisor before or after you get some of your loans and credit card debt paid off so you can start saving for a house, your kids' college education, and of course for retirement. Your days of carefree fun are still standing stage left once you get handed that degree.

I remember the exuberance I felt when I left high school. The world was full of possibilities. Every door was still open. But from the moment you choose a college, then a major, then an internship, then a first real job, doors begin to close, and you just have to hope that you have been true to yourself and you're on the path that's right for you. And that can be a very hard thing to do, but it's possible and it's necessary if you want to end up somewhere you really want to be. And living the life that you want is one of the most important accomplishments of all, degree or not.

So, little sister- the one who puts all the pizzazz in the family- congratulations on finishing school. I really am proud of you. I do believe you are prepared for this leg of the journey. This is where it gets really challenging. And that's a whole new kind of fun.