18 years ago, I attended my oldest child's high school graduation with my youngest child on my lap. Sarah was just shy of 18 at the time and Cheyenne was eight-weeks old. I remember the moment with absolute clarity. It was, in so many ways, both surreal and life affirming. I fully appreciated in that moment how [...]
Today, on the occasion of yet another graduation ceremony, I share a post I wrote on day three hundred and fourteen of the new forty. Another group of my darling nestlings will fly away again today. It keeps happening - as it should - but still, I never quite settle in with it. So today [...]
This evening I will attend a celebration in honor of one of our doctoral candidates who received her Ph.D. at NDSU's Winter Commencement this past Friday. The celebration was originally scheduled for Friday, but a Bison win the week prior necessitated a shift of plans. It is difficult for other social engagements to compete these [...]
Today is the day. Today a flock of my little birds will leave the nest and go off to their lives beyond college. Today I will applaud their accomplishments and imagine what their bright futures will look like. Today I will watch them fly away with enough potential and confidence to conquer the world. Today [...]
Well, tomorrow is graduation day at NDSU. 13 of our emergency management majors are graduating as well as a number of our minors. My emotions each graduation are a mix of happiness for the graduates and melancholy that I will likely not see them again for a long time. But as I often say, my little birds, [...]
Today another flock of my little birds officially leave the nest and fly away to new adventures. While I understand that was always the goal, I can't help but be a little sad each time another group of my students leave to pursue the next chapter of their lives. I miss them when they fly away. But [...]
Life's milestones...they start at birth and they keep going right up until you become a grandparent or great grandparent. One of the major and most recognized milestones in a young person's life is graduation. First it is kindergarten graduation filled with grins punctuated with missing teeth. Then it is high school graduation filled with the [...]
THE NEW FORTY 