As a family of weekly newspapers and monthly and annual publications, Current Publishing has a number of talented reporters who have learned much about how the world works.

While reporters are trained to be observers – rather than participants – in the action, it’s rare to hear directly from these hardened but still hardy souls, who have seen it all and written about much of it. So, according to Current Publishing tradition, it is apt at high school graduation time that we turn over this space to our reporters to impart some hard-earned life wisdom to this year’s crop of grads. Some of their advice is fun, some serious; but all of it is useful to help navigate the changes and challenges that are to come.

Kate Irish Collins (Current, Sun Monthly):

1. It’s OK to get fired and to quit; you will survive both conditions.

2. You don’t have to like everybody; you just need to find a way to respect them.

3. Join in, even if the activity, discussion, etc., is outside your comfort zone; especially if it’s outside your comfort zone.

Kayla J. Collins (Current, Sun Monthly):

1. No matter what path you choose in life, make sure you choose it with passion. Don’t settle for anything less than you are capable of doing, and make sure to challenge yourself every day.

2. Never give up on your dreams and always look toward the future with confidence. We are all destined to fail at some point in our lives, whether it’s minor or major, but just remember that the mistakes you make, and how you overcome those mistakes, is the true test of the kind of person you are.

3. Never stop smiling!

Larry Grard (Tri-Town Weekly):

1. Remember that if you’re talking about someone in a negative fashion, there’s a good chance somebody is doing the same about you. Keeping things to one’s self is one of those things that just doesn’t seem to come easily when we’re young. And by no means does this mean we shouldn’t express our opinions. But think twice about bad-mouthing someone, even if that person deserves it. What you say will get around.

2. Be an individual. There’s a real pack mentality in today’s society, and young people are particularly susceptible to this. We’re lemmings, swimming to the point of least resistance.

3. Stand your ground, even if you’re bucking the tide. That can be awfully difficult at times, and invites ridicule. Eventually, though, you’ll gain people’s respect.

Robert Lowell (American Journal):

1. I recall the long-ago words of my Gorham High School math teacher, Clifford Holden, who urged his students to never quit when trying to figure out a problem. “Be stubborn,” he said. Holden’s words still echo.

2. Don’t deceive yourself.

3. A professor once advised that a man should get his hair cut every 10 days. The advice didn’t sound practical then, but the decades have proved him a sage. Shorter gray hair is less telling of age.

Andrew Rice (American Journal):

1. Don’t get wrapped up in the cliches of graduation or any pressure you may feel to immediately accomplish great things. It’s important to have goals, but it’s more important to learn by living. See “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

2. Don’t be too quick to permanently leave your community behind, either before or after college. Your hometown and state could use your expertise.

3. That said, travel as much as possible now. You have about six years before people will really start asking you what you’re going to do with your life.

Ezra Silk (Lakes Region Weekly):

1. Search for the truth. Although our national discourse is often fueled by acrimonious debate over basic facts, it has never been easier to discern the shape of the world. With the help of non-partisan research available for free on the Internet, you can better understand the present and even peek into the future.

2. Live in truth. It won’t be easy, but if you read enough books and credible research reports, you will be able to situate our present moment, and your own life, within the grand sweep of history. Now comes the exciting part: How do you want to interact with the infinitely complex, inspiring and tragic human story? What role will you play?

3. Don’t listen to the Prophets of Boredom. We are living through one of the most significant moments in world history, a moment not unlike the late 1930s. Don’t let anyone tell you that the future is sealed, or that what you do with your life can’t have an impact on our society, or even our world. Do you really want to stand on the sidelines at a moment like this?