There are occasions that
unfailingly cause a catch in my throat.
They have to do with the bubbling up of fresh life. The birth of a baby—a tabula rasa on which all the hopes and possibilities of life
will be inscribed. Later, the
signs that the baby is becoming aware of him- or herself as a distinct person,
and is beginning to explore the boundaries of that personhood. Yet later, when the child first enters
school and starts to perceive the exciting world of knowledge that lies ahead
to be absorbed. Such
effervescences of life restore my optimism for the world, despite the
world-weariness and sometimes-cynicism of aging. They are invigorating antidotes to negativity, balms for the
abrasions of life.
Last Sunday was another such catch-in-the-throat occasion
for me, when I attended the commencement ceremonies at College Preparatory School in Oakland. A Helen
Green Turin Memorial Scholar was graduating—the second recipient of a
four-year scholarship for minority students named after my late wife. Along with her ninety classmates, she is about to go off
into the world on her own, her first time being away from the security of home
and family. Oh! I thought, what can compare to the sight of fresh life bubbling
up in all those youngsters, quite literally bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as
they relished their accomplishment and looked forward with zest to their next
stage of independence?
Commencement addresses are sometimes yawners, but on Sunday
history teacher Don Paige, who had been selected by the seniors to address
them, impressed me with his simple but vital message. Paige reminisced about the two times while he was in
college, full of his just-attained adulthood, when he had asked a revered
grandfather for advice on life.
Both times, Grampy had cradled the side of Paige's head with a hand and
responded, "Do good things."
Both times, Paige was puzzled and disappointed by the apparent blandness
of the advice.
It was only years later that Paige successfully parsed that
brief imperative sentence.
"Do": a active verb, a call to activity rather than passivity. "Good": a vague adjective
implying a change for the better.
"Things": an equally vague noun by which, Paige now
understood, his grandfather meant all of those actions that can effect a change
for the better in others' lives.
"Do good things": Help others improve their lives.
Paige ended his talk by suggesting to the Class of 2012 that
they augment College Prep's motto "Mens Conscia Recti" (a mind aware
of what is right) with "and do good things." I love the dissonance there: a bookish
Latin call for meditative thought, paired with a worldly Anglo-Saxon
exhortation to action. A good mix
with which to approach life.
As I watched the Helen Green Turin Scholar receive her
diploma, that familiar catch in my throat gripped me again. I thought, Grampy had really hit the
nail on the head. Each contributor
to Helen's memorial endowment had done a good thing, indelibly changing that young woman's life for the
better, encouraging the life force to bubble up in her.
I also knew that a bit of Helen's soul will be going out into
the world with her, rejuvenated.