A final Look Editor's Column: Leap of faith

Cartoon by Sabrina Robinson, Graphics Editor

My pastor told the congregation a story about the scientists and the frog.

The scientists wanted to see if they could change nature’s course. They decided to test this theory on a frog.

Frogs, jump.

The goal was to make one stop.

They enclosed a frog in a jar with a clear lid. Over the course of a couple of days, the scientists would tap on the side of the jar.

Frightened, the frog would jump. Jump, jump, jump.

And it would hit its head on an invisible barrier every time.

The experiment continued for weeks, but no matter what conditions the scientist put the frog under, it would leap. The frog still thought that it could escape its prison.

But one day, the scientist returned to the lab and noticed that the frog wasn’t exuberant as usual. When they tapped the jar, surely enough, it didn’t jump. It was alive, but the only sign of life was the glassy stare in his unblinking eyes.

They tapped, tapped, tapped the jar. But the frog remained still.

The scientists removed the lid. Permanently.

But the frog didn’t budge.

The scientists got creative. They shook, rolled, flipped the jar, but the frog remained stuck to its core.

Finally, the scientists had the bright idea to put the jar in boiling water. Surely the extreme conditions would quicken the frog.

But even the harsh conditions of the scolding water couldn’t jar the animal.

All the frog needed was to jump one more time, and it would have survived.

Even if this story makes you want to call PETA, the moral of it is clear. Your efforts are not in vain.

Each attempt at success is a gateway. Each failure a stepping stone in the right direction.

This generation is swamped with negative statistics. I think I can speak for all of us current and future graduates when I say, we get it.

But I submit to you – what would be the alternative?

You decided to expand your education because you wanted more than what was being offered to you. Wanting more for yourself is never a bad investment.

It’s easy to say I should have or I wish. But the decision has already been made. If you start regretting the decisions you made now, you’ll be regretting for the rest of your life.

If you can see the bad, then that means you’re capable of seeing the good. Believe in your success before you believe in failure.

Aspire for more than a big check; strive to make a difference. History doesn’t remember the rich; it remembers the game-changers.

I pray you all soar to new heights. See you in the sky, WSSU.