The Hartselle High School Class of 2014 must have done something right.

The weather hasn’t cooperated much during this school year, but it finally did in spectacular fashion Monday night.

Not only was it the first time in a few years where rain wasn’t in forecast, the sky delivered one of the best sunsets of the year, creating a near perfect backdrop for this momentous occasion.

I was lucky enough to capture the moment while taking photos during commencement exercises at J.P. Cain Stadium Monday night.

It’s fitting for an outdoor graduation to be held at sunset. This is the end of one segment of the life.

Some had a blast and would want to do it all over again. Some faced incredible challenges – in and out of the classroom – and are just glad to make it to graduation.

Others were looking forward to the day when they would be done with school altogether.

With the end of a day, however, comes a new day. It’s interesting to note that the Jewish faith signifies beginning of a new day at sunset. That might explain when you read about creation in Genesis 1 it repeatedly says, “and the evening and the morning were the (first, second, etc.) day.”

Just because the sun is setting on one part of our life doesn’t mean that life is over. It just means that a new chapter is beginning.

Sometimes, our new chapter begin at sunset. If that’s the case, it might get darker before it gets brighter.

Other times, another chapter begin at midnight. It’s dark when it starts, but it will soon get brighter.

Maybe your day begins at sunrise, where you see good times for a while followed by dark times near the end of your chapter, but just before you turn the page, it suddenly gets bright again.

Other times, the chapter might begin at noon. Where it starts at the brightest time of the day, fades to darkness and then comes back to full light by the end.

One thing that could affect how much darkness you have is your latitude. If you’re closer to the poles, you’ll have longer periods of darkness and brightness. Closer to the equator, the cycle is much more of a regular pattern.

Regardless of where you are in that chapter of your life, we need to cherish it – good and bad. You can’t have good without the bad.

Many times, we’re facing our last at bat in a chapter of our lives. There are times you strike out. Other times, you’re like Hannah Jenkins and smash a game-winning, two-run home run.

The one constant in life is change. Learning is the only way to adapt during bright or dark times. Once we graduate high school or college, learning doesn’t stop.

Learn all you can during each chapter and don’t stop when you begin a new chapter.

Brent Maze is the managing editor of the Hartselle Enquirer.