a blessing for the graduate

Bless the person you were,
the person you are,
and the shimmering maybe of who
you still might become.

We whisper words of thanks…
For the unexpected mercies that
carried you this far.
For the teachers who never gave up,
for the friends who never made you pretend,
for the family–chosen or given–that loves you,
and the prayers that sustained you.

For every late-night
existential crisis,
every “what am I even doing?”
that somehow, miraculously,
brought us here today.

Bless you as you embark on
whatever comes next.
For these bittersweet endings,
and for the blank pages ahead–
May you fill them with truth,
with goodness, with courage.
And what you’ve learned about love and grace
carry you further than certainty ever could.