by Jeremiah Rogers
It is strange standing here today. There was a part of me that didn’t believe this day would ever come, and an even bigger part that didn’t believe I would be speaking when it did, but here I am.
Formal education has been quite a journey for me, seeming at times, as stated, one that would never end. And in a way, it never will. I will always have what I have learned stored in my mind. But more importantly, although I am graduating from Mount Liberty College, I am not graduating from the school of life, the school of hard knocks, or even the school of past and future wisdom. There is always so much more to learn and relearn, so much that I have yet to comprehend. There’s a whole universe laying out there, incomprehensibly intricate and beautiful. But as I step out, into the rest of my life, I am grateful to have the opportunity to begin my coming quests on sure footing. Sure footing that was discovered and tested by journeying through the jungles of the liberal arts.
Looking back along this journey my gratitude for my friends and mentors, both those here and now and those of history, is immense. It has been a privilege to journey with Ari and Ariella for the past four years. I have learned so much from sitting with them throughout this journey. It has been a privilege to be guided by our professors. They are each so well versed and able to guide us through the thickets of ideas. It has been a privilege to read works from throughout history, I am truly grateful for the great thinkers of history who have forged through the jungle before me. I truly feel as though I stand on the shoulders of giants. But we also walk down their paths, journey personally through some of the thickets which they faced, we read their original works, I know that I have an understanding that cannot be gleaned looking from afar. I also know that in this specific journey there is so much that I missed. Despite that, each individual journey must come to a close as the one called college is now closing for me.
Interestingly at the end of this particular quest through the liberal arts jungle, I realize I didn’t find some ancient temple, filled with traps and treasures, but instead as I emerge, I feel that I have found myself. The journey itself was the treasure. I know that sounds like a message from a kids movie, but it’s true. Through the journey, I was like a stone in a river being tossed in the torrent, at times the stream of information and opinion felt overwhelming and throughout it all my preconceptions were challenged, but because of all that I have emerged a well-rounded character. One that is just beginning to crack the code of himself, beginning to deeply understand his values, and his beliefs, and his inadequacies. Of course, that only came about by discovering shards of truth all along the way. But truly, the way I now look at the world and understand my mind, that is what I find most valuable.
As I emphasized earlier, this isn’t the end of my education, just of the formal aspect thereof. I will always have the concepts and ideas taught in my head, ready to be found and used when life calls on me. I will be able to step back from the chaos of the moment, pause and answer distinctly. I will recognize and live principles. More than that, I will work to promote those ideas and principles through my actions, whether personal or public.
I don’t believe anyone up here will be satisfied being stagnant for long, we may be finishing here at Mount Liberty College, but we will each take upon ourselves a new quest, a new mission. I know that none of us will stop learning, or stop reading, whether formally or not. We’ve got our lives ahead of us, and, man, after surviving four years here, there’s nothing that can stop us.