Grace

Two weekends ago, my cousin's high school graduation took place. The entire Memorial Day weekend was jam-packed with celebrations, food, and family get-togethers. The actual ceremony was on Saturday afternoon at Elliot Hall on the Purdue campus. My family was seated in 3 rows, almost filling two of the rows, and only part of the third. High school graduations have become huge deals in my family. Most of my extended family traveled to the Keys for my sister's and mine, although one uncle did not even remember that he was in attendance at my graduation...que sera sera. It is extremely important to the grads that they receive a loud applause after their name is called. It is almost like it is a competition amongst the spectators to see whose family/friends of the 400 graduates can cheer the loudest. I like to think that our noise was amongst the top 10, at least. My cousin said she was thinking, "That's my family!" as she walked across the stage.

That evening, after the ceremony, we had a family dinner back at the house. There were twenty-six family members there, including 6 boys between the ages of 6 and 10. (The next day would be the day when hundreds of Midwestern high school graduation party fanatics would swarm the place and the yard and the tent for the 4-hour long open house.) It was a spaghetti dinner, complete with a separate pot of meatless sauce just for me (my family loves me). They have quite a large yard suitable to accommodate the running and playing of the children. Before dinner, most of the family was gathered out on the deck as the boys were playing in the backyard. When it was time to eat, all of us stood and joined hands to bless the food and fellowship. There were still two straggling boys that didn't really want to stop playing to eat, or worse, to pray. The other four were all in the circle and were getting a bit impatient. Nicholas, an 8 year old, is probably my favorite of the boys (I know it's not really right to pick favorites, but since none of my family reads this website, I will) . He is one that lives in Florida, therefore, I know him better and have watched him grow more than the Indiana residents. He is a very outspoken kid, and I imagine he is the class clown. He loves to be the center of attention and he loves to make people laugh. But yes, we were all gathered and joined in hands, and Nicholas was getting impatient waiting for the two boys playing in the yard. Everyone was quiet, waiting for the boys to come over, and all of the sudden Nick yells, "JAKE! ADAM! Get your BUTTS over here so we can say Grace!"

Grace is from the If I Left the Zoo album, by Jars of Clay.