The Blog Post of Celebration

Life has meaning only in the struggle. Triumph or defeat is in the hands of the Gods. So let us celebrate the struggle!

–Stevie Wonder

This month has certainly been a doozy, but in the best of ways. May 25th was my commitment ceremony for my time studying at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). Not only that, but throughout the whole month, I have taken the time to not only reflect, which I mostly did last month, but also to celebrate my accomplishment fully, not just on the 25th. As the above Stevie Wonder quote expresses and inspires times of struggle, call for proper celebration.

My college journey started in 2019. First, I studied hard and got my GED that same year and followed the momentum without a second thought, and enrolled in college. I chose SNHU because it had online courses and an English and creative writing program. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with a degree but I knew I wanted to get one to prove to myself I could. As for the chosen major and program, I had been writing poetry for myself since I was 18 to cope with my depression and anxiety, so I thought it was a good start reference to study. If Im being honest, though, in those early days, I really doubted myself because I hadn’t stayed with a full commitment to something for too long in my adulthood at that point. So, the fact that I have now completed the process is unbelievable and overwhelming to me and worth celebrating. I apologize now because I have a feeling this won’t be the last time I write on this, and yes, Im aware most of my blog posts have been about my impending graduation, but that’s because it is such a monumental deal for me. Celebrating this journey and no accomplished endeavor is what I hope is the first of many big deal moments moving forward in the future that calls for celebration.

However, my achievement made me think about celebration hard hence why I am writing about it this month in this blog. Sadly as someone who lives and struggles with mental health issues, I have not given myself many opportunities to personally celebrate, so I have never given the word much thorough investigation, surprisingly. The Oxford Dictionary defines celebration as : to show that a day or an event is important by doing something special on it. Given this definition, why don’t we/I celebrate every day?

Even the earlier shared quote from Stevie Wonder begs this question because if every day is a struggle and we should celebrate the struggle why do we all pick special and specific days and events to fully celebrate? As a person who doesn’t give myself enough credit, the commencement ceremony was so special for me; my family gathering and showering me with gifts, treats, and sweet words was everything; it felt so good and so foreign. Should it have felt so foreign, though, is that right that it was, is that a personal problem or one society has created? As a writer, of course, my response to these questions was to find more quotes and seeing others’ thoughts on this concern :

I think people in Italy live their lives better than we do. It’s an older country, and they’ve learned to celebrate dinner and lunch, whereas we sort of eat as quickly as we can to get through it.

–George Clooney

The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.

–Oprah Winfrey.

These respective quotes shed light on my concern for celebration and lack there of common self-celebration. Out of the two I really like the Clooney one because it really highlights how this issue could well be and likely is a societal problem in American culture. I do believe, however that this problem is fading because of influential people and work bringing attention to it. As someone who tried to stop my life way too early, I fortunately understand and know now how every day is precious, beautiful, meaningful, and worth celebrating. I also know, unfortunately that not everyone feels this way or has come to this understanding as of yet. If you are one of those people in the ladder group, first, I am so happy you have found your way to my page as that is its purpose, but more importantly, even though I know how hard it is to take the time every day to celebrate yourself and the fact you have stepped into and completed yet another day.