Graduation Comes Quietly

Jessica graduated this two weekends ago.


She was one of close to 300 hundred graduates being honored in the afternoon ceremony at the University of Central Missouri. Big Al, the twins and I joined in a springtime ritual like countless other family members and marveled at how quickly the time had passed and how suddenly she had morphed into an adult in front of our eyes.

There’s such a wonderful freedom in being a college student. Sweatshirts are always acceptable, especially if emblazed with the college insignia. Pajama bottoms are also appropriate, especially when worn with sweatshirts. Flip-flops are consistently fashionable and entirely accommodating to the Ramen noodle budgeted lifestyle most students embody.

Apart from the relaxed clothing is more often than not a laidback viewpoint to the future. College is all about preparing for the future, so while in process for getting there everything still seems obtainable. There are infinite futures, and endless outcomes. Once graduated, decisions become more concrete. The questions and answers black and white.

But Saturday’s ceremony was all about the traditions of the university and the grandeur of the ceremony, intermingled with occasional moment of hilarity.

As most young, exuberant grads will do, one of the young ladies seated on the same row as Sister, had written a message on her mortarboard. Apparently in bright, white tape she had spelled out “I did it!” a personal shout-out to her academic accomplishment. Unfortunately, she failed to consider in which direction she would be wearing her graduation hat and inadvertently placed her message upside down. In all of our pictures of the seated graduates there’s this one black square of gibberish, until you turn the image 180 degrees and read the intended words.

So many friends and family members are experiencing graduation ceremonies this year for themselves. For the grads it’s a clear line in the sand between childhood and adulthood. For parents like us, it’s a time to exhale a little, relax for a moment, until the time rolls around to prepare for the next round of children heading off.

And just as we’re all different as families and friends, so too are the ways we celebrate those incredibly brief graduation walks. I always enjoy sitting in the audience during Crowder graduation ceremonies. I’ve probably attended close to 30. I adore the way parents and grandparents, and not uncommonly children of the grads, clap and holler for their loved one.

Those precious 10 – 20 steps across the stage are being walked mentally by every friend and family member of the graduate as their named is called and the paper is placed in their hand. Some families mark the time with air horns and cowbells. Some clap wildly and holler “Way to go! We love you!”

While still other families like ours, large in numbers and extended in blessings, sit quietly, just soaking it all in; completely stilled by the passing of time and the possibilities yet to come.