To the Class of 2014 congratulations!!

Graduating High School is the first milestone in you adult life.

Howard Copelan, Publisher
Howard Copelan, Publisher

Funny thing is you really won’t remember this day well in 20 years and less in 30 or 40.

We hardly remember ours and we had to give a speech.

Since then we have been through a lot but our memories are fuzzy about those other milestones, except when it comes to our children.

We do remember with incredible clarity the graduations of our children.

Indeed when we look over the last half century of our own lives, the moments that are most dear to us were of our children, at best we played a secondary role and sometimes we weren’t even there at all except by telephone or computer.

Not having, not having children we cannot say whether life is worth living without them.

But it is so much more interesting with them.

The children you will have will be the most important people in your lives.

Sounds kind of silly and kind of selfish, yet it is nevertheless true.

If your generation does not make babies as every generation that has preceded it, the good, the bad and the glory of this species called homo sapiens will march into extinction like the dodo bird.

Kind of a scary thought that our civilization is just 100 years away from ceasing to exist.

But then it has always been.

It is a fragile existence.

As fragile as baby.

Guard it well.

And remember to take joy your baby’s smile.