Well, its that time again. That dreaded time. That time of the year when you are dragged to graduation after graduation to listen to speeches filled with gobbedly goop about life, love, and other mysteries that the speakers are obliged to pretend they have figured out. I spent last Saturday at the grad ceremony for LCU. It shouldn't have been that bad - shouldn't being the key word. There were only about 200 graduates...it felt like many, many more.

LCU made the graduates circle around the auditorium in figure 8's, going down through the middle of the aisles where all the professors stood in their velvet glory, skipping past the stands filled with adoring family members, and finally landing in their own seats. It was very much like a musical...minus the dancing, singing, and energy. The band there was awesome, though. They called themselves West Wind and apparently there were 2 requirements for membership: (1) You had to play a brass instrument (which is really ironic now that I think about their name) and (2) You had to be 80.

After 2 hours during which time I drifted in and out of consciousness, the moment we had all waited for arrived. And I do mean moment. My brother-in-law Kendell received his bachelor of science degree in nursing. With the diploma, he received yet another set of initials to put behind his name (Kendell Moore, LVN, RN, BSN) and a $0.50/hr. raise.

When my little siblings began moaning and questioning why we had to attend this graduation, why we have to attend this weekend's graduation of my cousin in Houston, and why in the course of their lives they will be forced to attend approximately 10 graduations (and this is just within our immediate family), this was the answer given: We are a family. This is what we do. We support each other. We love each other. We suffer for each other. And we do it with a smile.

Congrats, Kendell! And to all of you soon-to-be graduating seniors, go ahead and invite  me. My pain tolerance level is pretty high and getting higher all the time.