My Last Graduation

The minute Samantha graduated from the high school I reservedly thought Wheew!

The minute Briana graduated from the high school I not-so-reservedly thought Thank God—two down one to go.

And the nanosecond Kara graduated and I knew my high school days were finally over, I thought Get me the F—outta here.

I was so done.

In a little less than a week I will be heading down to Atlanta for my last college graduation. I am a little bit sad over it. I thoroughly enjoyed the time my girls spent in college—particularly the visits. The intermittent time spent apart and then together made our hearts grow fonder. With each daughter I shared special memories—shopping spots, restaurants and coffee shops.

The established kinship of one-on-one spent time together was priceless—it exceeded the value (almost) of their tuition.

By college’s end everyone had figured things out.

And for as much as high school lasted an eternity, college was over in a blink. Because my parental time in high school was bi-polar—the highs were high and the lows were low. Life was variable, volatile, and vociferous.

But college was not like that at all.

My college days were almost exclusively pleasant.

And now I must plan one-on-one time in between my daughters’ obligations. No more scheduled sorority brunches or dinners at the Apollo Grill, Elisabeths or the Iberian Pig. No more shopping at the Lehigh Valley Mall or the Susquahanna Mall or Lenox Square.

Everything moves forward. All the truisms apply: taking the bitter with the sweet; one door closing as another door opens.

And when my daughter’s name is announced and that last diploma is received, I will shed a tear. My investment reaped infinite reward.

And I will be proud of everyone’s accomplishments and rejoice that we took the journey together—no matter what the future brings.