Filling the Pages in a Life of Many Chapters

What’s more inspiring than watching someone become who they were meant to be??

Earlier this month, I attended the graduation of the class of 2022 at Pinellas Technical College in St. Petersburg, Florida. An experience that changed my definition of professional success.

I love a commencement ceremony – the unbridled joy and freedom of the graduates, the pride and relief on all the supportive, loving faces in the audience. I even love the long speeches from administrators in their colorful gowns and plush hats, sharing wisdom with the next generation as they emerge ready to take on the world. Students cross the stage confidently to collect their diplomas, as if they’ve finally arrived, and I clap as hard for each name called as I do for my own beloved graduate as they grab that highly meaningful piece of paper.

The graduate I came to see was my 68-year-old father, dressed in his cap and gown, 40 years older than the average student. Retired from a distinguished career in the United States Air Force, he has been making the most of the military’s GI Bill, working toward his technical degree as an electrician apprentice. Much to my surprise, gaining more knowledge in the energy field, like me, was part of becoming the person he was meant to be.

While impressed by his continuous pursuit of self-improvement, I admit I didn’t understand why he needed the degree after all he has already accomplished. Why not just enjoy a quiet retirement in Florida, or casually take adult education classes? Hadn’t he already achieved his career goals, reached the pinnacle of success in his profession? Been there, done that?

I thought back to my dad’s apprentice electrician certificate a few weeks later when I had the pleasure to attend Edison International’s Lineworker Scholarship award ceremony, celebrating the first graduating class of scholarship recipients, many who are now starting jobs with Southern California Edison. As I chatted with the honorees, I found incredible diversity in their backgrounds and experience, some just starting out, others coming from previous lives in nursing, construction, even a former international professional basketball player. They aren’t starting over or taking a detour off their defined plan. They are bringing into this new venture their varied years of experience, which will make them better at their craft and make them stronger teammates.

From the Pinellas Technical College graduation to our Lineworker Scholars celebration, I realized a career is not a single arc from college to retirement, and a life is not a straight journey from point A to point B. Rather, each is a book of many chapters, where we build on our previous experience, as we create better versions of ourselves, and actually become who we were meant to be all along. Retirement might be the closing sentence of one chapter, but a mere transition on our journey. It is not the end of the pursuit, nor the end of the story. Each successive experience counts, right up until the very last one.?