One More Iowa Mai
It's that sweet, fragrant, itchy time of year here in eastern Iowa. The lilacs and bleeding hearts are in bloom, the bugs and frogs are singing in the backyard, the neighbors are putting out fresh mulch, we're wearing shorts everyday now, and the calendar flips toward the end of another academic year. The rotation of the seasons brings our family to this May, feeling a little more anxious, a little more excited, and a little more sentimental.
One more round down by the old Millstream in Amana ... We first met when we made the offer on our home in Iowa City sitting on the steps of the little brewery and have had a lot of happy times picnicking and sampling the beer with friends and family on their porch ... In Heaven there is no beer, that's why we drink it here ...
One more roundabout on the ponies at a festival in Amana ... Patrick, Snickers, Butterscotch, we'll miss you, too. Giddyap Ponies!
A couple more chances to hang upside-down with our best friends before the school year draws to a close ...
One last invitation to this annual event ... The Roast.
Except this year, the food was fantastic and our name is on the program ... I've waited a long time to see this day; one of many Graduation Days in Joel's life, and a proud, proud one. I am so proud of Joel's hard, hard work, his patience with himself and others, his gifted memory, his problem-solving, and his willingness to show up.To quote a wise man, Confucius says “By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.”
But most of all, I am proud of Joel's good sense of humor. Without it, how could you swallow that bitter pill of experience, with its maddening ups and downs, rights and wrongs? Good thing that Confucius also say "half of a large intestine is equal to one semicolon."
Happy Graduation Day, Joela.
One more time, we prepare our para diddles and plies with friends wearing our glitter and tulle to celebrate the end of our tenure in Iowa City with a big, dancy finale ... (Our bunhead is the first one on the left, and our Baby Gene Kelly is in the Hawaiian shirt on the right.)
One more foray into the Mushroom Forest to say good-bye to all the paths, steps, meadows, glens, bridges, and gnome-homes. And still one more time to sit at the edge of the forest, perched on an ancient fossil and stand tall with the May wind across Coralville Lake making your hair ruffle at its bidding ...
There are many more things and people to remember, but these are the ones that I'm thinking about today.