Graduation and Milestones

"If you really want to do something, you will find a way; If you don''t, you will find an excuse." John Rohn. Lifted from my friends facebook post, thanks Ginni.

Congratulation to our Hannah as she walks across the stage and into the world. What a lovely moment. The giddy thrill of graduation, a blooming high you don't think you will ever come down from. And the scarier aspect, all of a sudden you are officially an adult somehow and expected to do adult things; 401k's, insurance, jobs. All of a sudden you are expected to act like an adult; to be honorable, do the right thing, make good decisions.

I'm here to tell you, Hannah, that it takes the brain a third of a second to change its mind so every decision can be altered in one third of a second. I'm here to tell you there aren't many bad decisions that aren't survivable -- like hail storms and heat waves -- they roll on through. Survival always rouses itself and makes itself heard. Our bodies move towards living for as long as they possibly can, with or without our consent.

Open yourself to a wider spectrum of thought.
Chat with aliens. Metaphorically speaking.
Make stories, internal or otherwise, about the interpretation of your experiences.
Your interpretation is the right one.
No one knows where a path starts or ends.
Life is a shared experience.
Most of our shackles are invisible.
Stay faithful to living.

Another milestone; Ian received a promotion, four months after his last promotion, on the world stage, he is now an assistant buyer for Something Silver. When Ian was twenty or so the two jobs he thought he would like more than any other was event planner or buyer. He was told both were really hard to break into, yet here he is successful.

The head buyer is moving to Boise Idaho, so the assistant buyer is moving up to head buyer and Ian and another are becoming the assistant buyers. The other person will be in charge of the basics and Ian, you guessed it, will be in charge of the trendy. Congratulations Ian.

Speaking of milestones, who's going to the UK for the first time? I am busting with pride and envy in just about equal measure.

My milestone year of limericks is coming to a close. It all started with Jean and is ending with Andrew on July 5th. I'm getting pooped and fear I am getting uninspired and therefor not entertaining, but I think I can hold it together for a few more rounds of rhymes.

Connor has started explaining, in detail, often, in great detail, precisely, in direct opposition to what ever I suggest. "...the problem with that granny is_____."  What ever the "is" might be. The boy has a brain.

I took Connor some strawberries and he said, with great animation, "Do you know what makes strawberries really yummy?' No, I answered. "Eating them with ice cream!" You would have thought he had just learned how to spin straw into gold. The boy has good taste.

It seems every time I have Connor we wind up in a discussion about poop. The boy is as regular as clock work. Come 5:15 the boy needs to poop. So, he comes running out of dance class and rushes to the bathroom. I'm watching from the sidelines. He stays in there and stays in there and stays in there. Pretty soon the teacher comes out and directs him back to class. Class is over and Connor needs to change out of his ballet slippers and put on his street shoes. I hand him the shoes and instruct him to change. He says, loudly, very loudly, where every man woman and child in the dance studio can hear, "I can't I have to go wipe my butt." It seems the dance teacher interrupted this very important part of going to the bathroom process, and some men need extra time with the ritual.

Not sure that is a milestone or graduation.

Buddha said: Before enlightenment we have to chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment we have to chop wood and carry water. The mundane maintenance of life never ends, we must eat, sleep, and go to the bathroom. The peeling of onions and washing of socks never ends.

Life continues "...in the quiet grace of the moon."