Pearls of Wisdom

Over the weekend, I attended an alumni event at Bucknell. I didn't have anything else to do so I figured it would be a chance to reconnect with some people I used to work with who I don't get to see much while I'm there for my part-time job. I wasn't sure I'd see any fellow alumni that I knew, but I'm beyond the point in my life where I need a group involved to go out and do something.

One of the receptions I attended includes some current students. After catching up with some staff members I know, one of them encouraged me to talk with some current students. He said, "Let them pick your brain, Carol. Share your pearls of wisdom."

I immediately laughed. My response was: "Dan, these students don't want to talk to me. They don't want to hear what I have to say. I'm not a Bucknell success story. I'm five years out from graduation, I'm unemployed, and I live with my parents. They don't want to hear that; they want to hear how great life is with a Bucknell degree."

I, of course, find this amusing. This is how I get myself through my current situation. I find ways to laugh about it. If I can laugh, it can't be all that bad, you know?

The truth of the matter is that it really isn't bad at all. Like I've said before, I feel good about my decisions and my choices to take this temporary rest at home. I don't really feel like a failure, but there is sometimes a sense that because I have a Bucknell degree, I should be doing something astonishing with my life. That's what some people think. That's the pressure I sometimes feel as a Bucknell alum.

The way I see it now, though, is that if you're not happy with your life and you're in a position to make some changes so that you can improve your happiness, then you owe it to yourself to take those steps. That's what I've tried to do. Sure, I haven't figured out all of the details yet, but I'm pretty positive I'm on my way to putting the pieces together. Once that happens, then I'll gladly tell Bucknell students how great life is with a Bucknell degree. Until then, though, I'll keep my pearls of wisdom to myself.