Pomp and stuff

Jayne and I spent Saturday watching a friend graduate from Grand Valley State University.

Derrick is the son of a person Jayne worked with, the woman whom Jayne tried to resuscitate at the school library.

Derrick was one of about 2,000 graduates who filled the Van Andel Arena in downtown Grand Rapids. The ceremony was nice and lasted about 2 hours. The speaker was U.S. Sen. Debbie Stanbenow, a Democrat from Michigan, who spoke about change. Standard graduate talk, really, but luckily bereft of politics and patriotic jingoism.

I have a picture above of us leaving the arena, walking back to the parking lot in Grand Rapids. Note how people look huddled. It was windy and chilly considering the day or so before it was 80 degrees. I guess 45 is cold compared to that.

After the ceremony, we joined Derrick and his two aunts for a dinner at Via Maria in Holland (Get the tri-colored tortellini. Great!) then some conversation at Derrick's house on Holland's northside.

It was an enjoyable evening. I like the educated banter with the group that swings from high literature (don't tell Kay you don't like Flannery O'Conner!) to fart jokes.

I'm so out of shape when it comes to socializing that, after we got home, I put the kids to bed, fell asleep while Alyssa read aloud, then woke; then fell asleep while Elspeth read a short story, then awoke; got the laundry out of the dryer then went to bed, all by 11 p.m. Man, I'm old.

Thought: I wonder what it was like to be the last person to cros that stage to get the degree?