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| Youth Triumphant Fountain |
On Friday, my daughter and I attended my late friend A's younger daughter's graduation with a Master's in Educational Counseling. The graduate, whose name also starts with A, worked full time as a teacher while studying for her Masters and I know her mother would have been so proud of her achievement.
A, her father, and sister, offered to pick us up on their way to the graduation ceremony and we accepted the offer gratefully, as it meant I didn't have to drive and find parking, etc., since A had validated parking on campus. The graduation ceremony was scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. and we were being picked up around 2:30 p.m., but, daughter and I were dressed and ready by 2:00 p.m.
A and family picked us up a little after 2:30 p.m. and we must have hit every traffic snag on the way! We barely made it to the event on time, arriving at the parking structure at 4:25 p.m.! Then, we still had to make our way from the parking structure to the quad where the ceremony was being held, outdoors under a huge tent. The line of graduates was starting to enter the tent when we got there, but, A was still able to join the line and walk in while we found seats at the very end of the tent. I found the commencement speeches to be very inspiring and it was a pleasure to see the graduates walking to receive their diplomas and at the very end, the university's marching band played.
After the ceremony, there was a reception, also held outdoors, with live music. They served a buffet style meal of salad, grilled chicken skewers, eggplant and marinated red pepper sandwiches, individual bags of chips, and three kinds of cookies - chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, and snickerdoodles. There was lemonade (and water) to drink. Daughter and I found a bench in a fairly secluded area in the garden where the reception was being held and we felt comfortable enough to pull down our masks to enjoy our meal. We sat there and waited for a while and then, went with A to take some pictures.
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| The Trojan Shrine aka "Tommy Trojan" |
And the University's mascot, Traveler:
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| Traveler - the Mascot |
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| Light Fixture in the Lobby |
It was past 11:00 p.m. when we got home, so, it had been a fairly long day out for us. After we came home, we had a little bit of the dinner we had brought home from the restaurant and relaxed.
- Being invited to attend the ceremony
- Getting a ride there and back
- Spending time with friends
- A lovely day out
Fascinating post and lovely photos! I love the mascot! And I love the things you are grateful for. I am grateful for you and your blog, and I really enjoy your posts. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Linda, for your very kind comments. I'm glad you are enjoying my posts. :)
DeleteIt was nice that you could be there to support A's daughter. I'm sure it meant a lot to her. I get really annoyed when music is played so loudly that you can't talk. However, I know that some restaurants use that as a strategy to get people to leave sooner.
ReplyDeleteThank you, June. I was very happy that daughter and I could be there for my friend's daughter (she and my daughter are friends, too, and she asked my daughter to help her with her cap and gown and the sash, etc., as she very hurriedly put them on in the parking garage!) You might be right about the restaurant playing loud music to get people to leave sooner, because there was a line of people waiting to be seated, both when we entered and when we left! It was one of those trendy new restaurants full of young adults out on a Friday night. I think my friend's widower and I were the oldest people there! LOL.
DeleteThank you for sharing photos from the graduation. DGD would approve of Traveler, the mascot. A pity about the loud music in the restaurant. The other day we were able to avoid a restaurant because of some loud, unpleasant music and we found one with gentle, relaxing music instead.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Bushlady. Glad that DGD would approve of Traveler. :) The restaurant was playing the type of music and at a volume meant to appeal to its intended clientele - young adults in their 30s and early 40s. It was very upbeat music and I recognized most of the songs because my daughter used to listen to them, but, just a decibel or two lower would have made it easier to converse. :D
DeleteThank goodness you all made it to the ceremony on time. A must think a lot of you both to include you in her celebrations. And it sounds like she has a great work ethic to have graduated at the same time as working as a teacher. Well done A!
ReplyDeleteYou must have felt very proud of her. Xx
I know! I was hoping with all my might that A will make it in time for her own graduation! Although, had she been late, she would not have been the only one to do so! There were at least a couple of others who came later and walked the stage to receive their diplomas well after their names were called! I felt very honored when A invited me to her graduation; she said we were family (she's known me since she was 3). I am very proud of A (and her sister, too).
DeleteWhat an incredible achievement by your friend's daughter. I think something like that is a big deal and the celebration is well deserved. It sounds like an amazing time.
ReplyDeleteThose statues are amazing and full of character, so very striking. You don't often see something like that outside museums.
Thank you, Lyssa. Yes, it is an incredible achievement by my friend's daughter. I feel honored to have been invited to celebrate her achievement with her and her family. The statues were very popular spots to have ones picture taken on that day, with people lining up to do so.
DeleteThank goodness you made it for the ceremony! It must have been so stressful on the journey - and they had allowed plenty of travelling time too. Well all was fine in the end and I'm glad you had a day out after such a long time.
ReplyDeleteYes, thank goodness we got there in time! There was quite a bit of tension in the car on the way there, especially after the GPS navigation system A was using directed us off the freeway and on to surface streets. Surface streets in that area of the city are narrow and crowded and it was around the time the schools were letting out students, so additional traffic with parents picking up kids, school buses, etc., as we passed by quite a number of schools. What I hadn't realized until after the car ride was that A had wanted to leave a bit earlier than they did, but, she was waiting for her sister to get home from work and her sister had delayed. There's also, apparently, some existing tension between the sisters, too, which is a pity, but, it happens, sometimes, especially as they have different ways of coping with their mother's death. I was just very happy to be invited to participate and glad I could be there for them.
DeleteHow nice that you were invited to share this special day with your friend A's daughter on her special day. That's quite a big effort working full time while attaining your Masters. Good for her and congratulations to the family.
ReplyDeleteThis day was filled with good food!
Your pictures are really nice. I especially like the lighting fixture.
It was an honor to be invited to the graduation ceremonies and dinner, afterwards. Lots of good food and company on that day. Daughter took the picture of the light fixture for me; it reminded me of lanterns.
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