High school graduation and retirement are two occasions I consider milestones in a person’s life. Now I have been blessed to experience both!

This past Saturday my Indiana Girls, Lori, Debbie, and Sherry, coordinated a retirement/euchre card playing party to celebrate my decision to leave the medical field as a registered nurse. They crowned me with the tiara shown above in the picture, and it all was really quite lovely. Of course we played cards because we all love a good game of euchre. We laughed a lot, ate some great food…and became a little competitive with our card game. So fun to spend time with girlfriends! Celebrating!

Then I drove back home and attended my neighbor’s party. Mike and Maritza live next door and their nephew Ryan was graduating from high school. I can’t believe it as I have known him since he was about eight years old. Cars were everywhere; their driveway, my driveway, and spilling over into both our front yards. They have an outdoor pool and also had rented a “jumpy” for the “littles” as Maritza calls the smaller children. Music was floating across the backyard from Mike’ s outdoor bluetooth, along with bubbles from the “littles” blowing on their soapy wands. Celebrating!

I think about myself as a high school graduate, eighteen years young and so full of life and having no idea what was ahead of me. I remember my own graduation party and also attending a couple of girlfriends’ parties, too. Lord! Didn’t we all have so much energy as eighteen year young teenagers? I graduated in 1976, the Bicentennial Year. I remember wearing a short jumper with red, white, and blue stars all over it. We were all so proud that we graduated in 1976!

I think about that young graduate, that young Joan with her long, blonde hair and her short skirts. She thought she was invincible. She thought she knew everything. What eighteen year young person doesn’t? I wish now I would have had the wisdom I have now back in 1976. I used to think it would be great to be able to see into the future. For quite a while now I have reversed that decision. That young Joan would have never been able to grasp her own future. I imagine it would have been so overwhelming she would not have been able to step forward into the future if she had known. Could anyone? Can you imagine what it would be like if someone had told you your future when you were graduating from high school?

Here I am now, forty-eight years later, my hair short, a darker blonde, and a soft silver around my temples. I still love to wear skirts but they are much longer, down to my knees or ankles. I still have a lot of energy. Though I am not invincible I do believe when I pass I shall live on, transform into a different type of energy, a different consciousness. And the more years I spend on this earth the less I think I know. A little bit wiser now. :O)

I embrace that young Joan. She really was amazing though she didn’t know it at that time. I talk to her sometimes on my prayer walks. In my mind I hold her hand and we walk side by side. I need her and she needs me. With her I understand myself better. I understand others better. I hope Ryan does that as he moves forward in his own life, and gives himself a lot of grace. There are new milestones ahead for both of us.

c   Love, Joan