What The Future Holds?

One day, twenty-seven years and three months after this photo date was a great life experience. It was June 1993 as my wife and I were seated in the football stadium bleachers at North Forsyth High School in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Our families were seated around us along with a thousand more people.

The occasion was graduation and our son, David, was in that class of '93. At the scheduled time on the agenda the school principal made the announcement: David was Valedictorian. He had the highest grade point average among three-hundred plus graduates. We knew he was in the running for this honor, but were not sure until that moment. The principal added that he was also Athlete of the Year.

Around midnight on the day of graduation ceremony, I suddenly awoke and realized that our son had grown up and would soon leave home. I tossed and turned in bed until 2:00 am. I finally got up and went into the kitchen where I started the coffee pot. I sat in the quietness of our home as my family slept. I retrieved stationery and began to write a letter to David about our eighteen years together. I shed many tears from midnight to dawn as I recalled his childhood and our time together. I sought to express my thoughts on one handwritten page. It took three hours to write and rewrite the one page to my satisfaction. When the family wakened around 6:00 am, the finished letter was at David's place at the breakfast table. After family tears from the words I wrote, I urged him to keep the letter.

Isn't it wonderful to review special periods in time?

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Have a good day!