An End of an Era...

Think back to December 1999—where were you? If you’re a Senior in College like me, you were 11. Can you remember what mattered most? Try to re-connect with your younger self for the purpose of this article as I have been thinking a lot about that person—the person I was—and realized that this year is an end of everything that was, and yet it is the beginning of everything to come. Sound confusing? Read on…

Micheal Jackson died this year, so did Farrah Fawcett, Ted Kennedy and Walter Cronkite. And honestly, that’s only a small number of names of people—famous, infamous, and unknown—who will not see the ball drop as the first decade of Y2K ends this December. They all impacted our world in a different way. Michael Jackson made us love each other and realize that “it doesn’t matter if you are black or white.” Farrah Fawcett influenced years of hair styles and created one of the first images of “strong women.” Ted Kennedy, brother to John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy, passed away; thereby ending a political dynasty. These massive generational shifts happen every so often; as one generation’s norm is taken over by the next’s.

Ten years ago I had a cell phone, but only for emergencies. Now I have an iPhone and without it I am lost. Ten years ago I used AOL and needed to find a dial up connection in order to get online. Now I simply turn my computer and have access to the World. Ten years ago the U.S. Dollar was worth more then it’s weight in gold, today we are lucky if is even worth the paper it is printed on. These changes all contribute to who you are, to who I am and to who, ultimately, we will all become.

What will the next ten years bring? Who will the next King of Pop be? Who will be the inspirational leaders; the movers and shakers of the new Millennium.

Here’s a hint- it could be your best friend, the guy who falls asleep in Math class, or maybe even you. It’s really all in your hands—so be ambitious, be courageous and most of all be proud of who you are and proud of what made you who you are; tragedy, happiness, relationships- they are all merely “rest stops” on the road of life so enjoy every minute of it and take a break every once and a while, believe they are worth it.