by: Jenni Vinson
May 24, 2001
Be patient with your parents. This is a very difficult time for them. I am sure that it seems like it was just yesterday that they watched you walk across a stage in a cap and gown to receive your diploma, certifying that you had met all the necessary requirements and were deemed eligible to graduate from Preschool.
I�m sure they wiped away a few tears as they marveled at how grown up you looked then, when you were five. Since that time, they have stood by you through many other events that they have catalogued as milestones in your life, times that let them know that you were getting older.
That first day of kindergarten was rough for your parents, as they left you behind in a class with more than a few criers. They worried about whether you would join in with the criers and they stood by the phone just in case you needed them.
That first PTA program was an exciting event. Parents work miracles in creating costumes from construction paper and warm ups! There was a definite sense of pride that evening as they watched you belt out those songs you learned, or maybe you were the one that ran off the stage and into your parents arms in utter stage fright. Either way, they could not have been prouder.
Through the years, they saw you come through the door with a collection of blue, red and green ribbons from Fields Days which you handed to them through a red-stained smile from drinking kool-aid all day.
They accepted the macaroni covered jar for Mother�s day and the paper weight for Father�s day. They probably still have them along with the card you made with your hands imprinted on it that says �So You Will Remember Me When I Was Small�. I assure you, they will never forget.
This week, they will recall the first tooth you lost and that first Tooth Fairy visit. They will remember all those report cards, most of them fondly and all the student lead conferences they sat through as you showed off all your work as they listened to the teacher comment on your good points and perhaps a few minor �places that need improvement�.
They attended more than a few Choir and Band Concerts, Football, Baseball, Basketball, Soccer games, Swim Meets, Tennis and Golf tournaments and they have followed you to UIL this, that and the other. They have gotten you to all your rehersals and practices and they have made themselves available to carry whatever you forgot back to the school for you- always in the nick of time.
They have helped you sell for your fundraisers (some parents probably still have some World�s Finest Chocolate bars in their freezers) and they have worked concession stands and barbeques year after year. And if your parents were really valiant, they chaperoned on field trips that went anywhere from Flournoy Park to Florida. There is nothing like a five day trip on a Greyhound full of rowdy teenagers, especially when that �we�re stuck on a bus� smell begins to set in.
You may have had some troubled times, when you were sure you knew exactly what you were doing, but you ended up flat on your rear. It was your parents who extended a hand to help you back up, dust you off, hug you and set back aright. Even though they probably lectured you the whole time, they proved to you that they will be there even if you fail and fall.
And now, here you are, a graduate, ready to take on the world; ready to show off what you�ve been gathering - all that knowledge that has been instilled into you. You are ready! Many people like your teachers, your church, your friends and your family have made sure that you got to this day-- ready.
It�s your parents that are not ready and there is nothing that can ever prepare them for being ready for you to go. For them, this is a �READY OR NOT� situation. This is just going to happen.
Graduation from highschool is the definitive milestone that indicates to your parents that you have crossed over from being a child, in any sense of the word, into adulthood.
They are going to miss you. The house will be quieter without you and there will be some sadness, but this is their job and if you walked across that stage on Friday night, they did it well. They have raised you to come to this point in your life to where you can go forth and be whatever your heart desires; whatever your mind is prepared to work for.
You may have the entire summer to prepare for your departure. Begin by taking assessment of what you will need to take with you. The first thing you will need to pack are your manners and do not forget to unpack them FIRST when you get to where you are going. Be mindful of the lessons your parents taught you. They were not meant as suggestions nor where they rules set to be followed ONLY while you lived under their roof. They are meant to be guidelines for the making of a happy, safe and healthy life.
Remember that there are always consequences to everything you do and say- either for good or for bad. Chose wisely and try to bring about the good consequences.
Above all, I would encourage you to take a good look at your parents. Sometimes, they just get lost in the woodwork. They are just always there and they always get things done. That�s about to change.
If you have not already done so, today would be a great time to hug them , kiss them and thank them for everything they did to get you to where you are today.
May God bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you. May your path be clear and illuminated and may you seek to follow in it and not stray from it. May you always find HOME to be a place of comfort.