Ever since Mary Schmich’s “Wear Sunscreen” commencement speech was published in 1997 and subsequently turned into a radio hit in 1998, I’ve been secretly thinking about what I would say if I were ever asked to give advice to graduating high school seniors.  Is that weird, or does everyone do that?  Don’t actually answer that — I fear I already know the answer.  Even odder is that when I first started engaging in this exercise, I was only a year out of high school myself.

Fortunately – or perhaps inconsequentially given the likelihood of my ever being asked to perform such a task – the message has evolved over the years.  It actually changes almost every time I think about it.

Today’s version is inspired by a quote I recently happened upon by a guy named Ryan Adams.  Don’t worry – I had no idea who he was either and had to Google it.  He’s a musician and writer – married Mandy Moore, wrote some poems, etc.  Anyway, he said “There is nothing wrong with loving the crap out of everything.  Negative people find their walls.  So never apologize for your enthusiasm.  Never.  Ever.  Never.”

First of all, his conviction is captivating.  I love it when someone commits to a thought with that much heart.  “Never.  Ever.  Never.”  Nicely done, Mr. Adams.  Even if I didn’t agree with you, I would probably be compelled to at least understand what you’re trying to say.

But it so happens that I do agree with you.

One of the most beautiful upsides of getting older is that I think it’s easier to have a true sense of self.  For me, as I’ve reached the ripe old age of 34, I find that anymore I am almost never apologetic for who I am.  For what I believe,  For how I tackle the world.  And in relation to this quote, for my enthusiasm for the simple pleasures that bring me joy.

And that’s what I would tell the graduating class of 2014, if asked to stand and deliver today.  I’d say: Figure out what you actually think and what you actually feel.  What you believe.  Really take the time to understand yourself and your motives.  Make sure they are really yours and not borrowed from someone else or put upon you by society, as so often they are.  And then?  Then embrace them.  Be your own hero and make your own awesome.  Go all in, even if no one else does.  Even if your heart is at risk.  Even if everyone else is skeptical.  To paraphrase another quote – you’re not here to fit into someone else’s world… you’re here to build your own.  Build it.  Do it.

Do it with heart.  Do it with enthusiasm.  Do it with energy.  Whatever it is.  Because anything worth doing and experiencing will be brighter and more vivid if you bring those elements to the table.  And do it with humor.  In fact, go nowhere without your sense of humor.  Don’t even get out of bed in the morning without it because I guarantee that the world is waiting to rob you of yourself, and if you lose your ability to laugh it off, you will eventually allow it.

Don’t waste a single second wondering whether you are good enough, smart enough, capable enough.  Let your actions prove that you ARE, even if it’s you that needs convincing.  Give yourself the beautiful gift of freedom from the negative monologue in your head that slows you down.  Just dismiss it.  It’s only there because you allow it to be, so revoke your permission.

Go after the life you imagine, even if it doesn’t measure up to anyone else’s preconceived notions or expectations.  Because it is you that must wake up every day and live in that life you create.   You that must feel every beat of your heart.  Make it a beat you can dance to… sing to…  delight in.

And lastly, don’t ever stop believing in the beauty of possibilities.  Never.  Ever.  Never.  Possibilities are the seeds that, with the right care, blossom into life’s greatest works of art.  They are the dreams that keep us reaching and growing — searching.  And there is always another to reach for right around the corner.   Reach for it with enthusiasm.  And don’t apologize for it.