You know what’s amazing me these days? High school graduations. Not actually the kids graduating from high school – I’ve done that. I know it’s possible. (Although, after attending a high school graduation party over the weekend I became slightly obsessed with how healthy a teenage girl’s hair is. Seriously amazing. So thick! And unprocessed! With no post-partum hormonal imbalance to make it fall out. Enjoy that, girls.)
No, what I am more impressed with are the parents. And, since I’m a mom, I am going to zero in on the moms (Not to at all put dads aside. They did just as much to get their kids to graduation, but I like to blog from experience and I’ve never experienced being a dad!).
Well done, Moms. You did it. You actually made it through. You made it through hundreds of permission slips, PTA committee meetings, school projects, lunches, spelling tests, “family” art projects, science fairs, and exams. You made it through the tween drama, the failed sports team tryouts, and the state championship games. You made through thirteen summer vacations, thirteen Spring Breaks, and thirteen crazy Mays and Decembers.
And, now you’re (hopefully) seeing the fruits of your labor. You raised a graduate.
Simply amazing. It’s actually possible.
I’ve never done that. I still don’t know how it’s possible to raise a kid who is not only smart enough to enter college, but is smart enough to actually stay in college and get something out of it (don’t even get me started on how much I look up to parents of COLLEGE graduates!). I hope I figure it out sooner rather than later.
I know that for mothers of high school graduates, this is bittersweet. Your babies are grown. Your time is “done” (well, we all know it’s never “done,” but you know what I’m saying). But, for the moms who are still in the elementary school trenches, the middle school and high school madness, or (gasp!) preschool jail, we see it as one thing:
Success.
It’s success mixed with inspiration and a little bit of fear.
It is possible. It is feasible. And it will happen. To all of us.
(Fingers crossed.)
