BEGINNINGS

Tonight there is a new beginning.  Our grandson graduates from high school.  He will begin a new part of his life.  Going from high school to college might not qualify as new to some.  He will exchange one set of classes for another.  One set of teachers for another.  He will study in a different location, but he WILL study.  Grandma will make sure. 

There will be major changes.  Although he will be surrounded by people, he will leave his brothers behind.  He will not have his mommy looking over his shoulder nor his daddy setting a curfew.  He will begin to control his own life.  He will keep track of his own schedule and when reports are due.  (To be honest, this grandson already does that.)  He will be – are you ready?  He will be responsible for himself! 

Responsibility – for sure a new beginning.

This makes me think about all my new beginnings.  Do not run in fear.  I am not going to tell you all of them!

Graduation:  I was sooooo happy to graduate.  I love to learn but I never did like school.  I love to read, but was forced to pick from a list created by someone who had no idea what my interests were.  I love numbers but could not understand why I needed to learn all those formulas when they were right there in the book.  I wanted to play drums but was told girls do not play drums.  For sure I was not the cheerleader type, the choir director ran when she saw me coming and I had to keep my shoes on.  I do want you to know I was a very well behaved.  A few of us skipped out on an assembly and the principal marked me present because he just knew the teacher missed me.  I did not correct him.  Graduation!  YES.  But the real reason…..

Love and Marriage:  Well, first came business school until I got a job paying $90 a week.  I had gone to business school long enough to know $ 90 a week in beat $90 a month out for school.  And that $90 a week sure beat the 35¢ an hour as a car hop.  Of course there were tips at the car hop job.  And a good lookin guy in a really cool, black car.  A first date, a few more and wham.  He was mine.  First came love, then came marriage, then came

A Boy:  I had never even babysat!  And there were no classes at the local hospital.  This beginning did not come with instructions.  Feeling really sharp pain in the middle of the night.  Hospital.  Child.  Home.  What if I stick him?  (We used cloth diapers and pins back in the dark ages.  No fake diaper with Velcro)  What if I drop him?  A bath?  I have to give him a bath?  Ok.  It was not really that bad.  I fell in love that little guy the minute I laid eyes on him.  I rocked him.  I read him stories.  And thought he looked absolutely adorable in bib overalls.  Oh my ..

A Girl:  Then there were two of those little people.  But this one was a girl.  With hair that needed combed and put into pigtails.  A sweet little thing that loved to climb.  I never knew where I would find her.  Often it was in the doctor’s office getting stitches!  She would put her dishes in a dump truck.  She carried her dolls upside down.  She carried a cat in the crook of her arm and squeezed until its eyes were ready to pop out.

New Homes:  A home is where you hang your hat and, during my adult life and if I wore a hat, it would have hung in seven different homes.  I never minded moving.  It is a great way to thin out possessions, meet new people and celebrate new memories.

Retirement:  Talk about a change.  Yes, we still do some real estate sales, but no more sitting at a desk because I have to.  Now I google away for fun.  Or to get facts because I am battling with our local school board.  Now I can read whatever I want from my own list.  I do not care how to find the square root of anything.  We can go on vacation when we want and do not have to worry about getting reports out.  I can write this blog and let the cleaning wait until whenever.  And I can go to a high school graduation tonight.

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This has absolutely no point.  It is about beginnings.  It is about life.  Oh, …..

Maybe it does have a point.  Each day is a new beginning.  It is full of wonder.  Excitement.  Joy.  Calm.  Trouble.  Each day is a new beginning and an opportunity.  Enjoy it.  Be good enough to get marked present the only time you skip school, read those crazy words in Dr. Seuss (with sound effects), help load toy dishes into a toy dump truck, do not get stuck in comfortable and relax.