Congratulations Class of 2008, you did it! You can finally delete WASL and high school cliques from your vocabulary, but be sure to add jobs, taxes and bills. For most of you, these will forever remain a part of your life.

But don’t let that get you down. Some say high school marks the best years of your life, but you still have plenty of living to do before you can say you agree. Starting this next chapter of your life may sound a little scary, but 10 years from now you will look back and realize you had nothing to worry about.

Some of the best advice for you, Class of ’08, can be found in an excerpt from the song, “Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)” by Baz Luhrmann.

“… Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded.

But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked … You’re not as fat as you imagine. Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum.

The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday. Do one thing every day that scares you. Sing. Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. Floss. Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind … the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself …

Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. Respect your elders.

Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out. Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you’re 40, it will look 85. Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it.

Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.”