~   As the academic dignitaries entered the room, my first thought was, “It’s positively medieval!”  I’ve been reading in Huizinga about color symbolism, so it was a lovely moment of recognition to see the academic regalia.  For all our culture’s embracing of non-conformity, we still savor ceremony. 

~   Graduations are great displays of belonging.  There was a sweetness in watching both the crowd and the graduates as they searched the arena for their people.  I can’t remember the name of the famous statue of a man pointing ahead, but I saw many replications of that statue on Saturday. In a room filled with thousands of people, it was wonderful to find my daughter-in-law and to make eye contact with her.

~   Cameras have made entertainers clowns of us all.  Roughly 900 graduates had five seconds each of coverage on the large screens before they received the empty red holder promising a degree in the mail in six weeks.  A large percentage could not resist making a face, blowing a kiss(es), hand gestures or mouthing words. 

~   Can’t resist this tidbit: summa cum laude.  It’s not official because she has three credits to complete.

~   Cute story: my friend Debbie, who is also Taryn’s mom, had Taryn’s cell phone.  Debbie needed to call Carson’s cell but couldn’t find his name anywhere on Taryn’s phone.  Finally she located it under Mr. Incredible!

~   Quote of the weekend from my Carson:  “You can tell you’ve been successful if Mom is crying.”