Monday, May 28, 2012

Fall plans? No thanks, it's summer.

It feels like I ought to have something profound to say, here in the aftermath of Sam's high school graduation. Funny thing is, I am not feeling very profound at all at the moment. I'm feeling pretty relaxed, which is a lovely thing, but not very profound.

In fact, I don't feel much like someone whose life is about to turn on its ear. Which of course, mine is. There is this unpredictable summer period, then everything gets new and different. Sam will be off to college and after 18 years of togetherness, I can't even imagine what it will be like to not see him on a daily basis. He's always been rather private, so it's not like we share daily, heart-to-heart chats, but there was always some sense of check-in, of knowing whether his day was good or bad, of hearing his laughter. I can't quite get my head around what it will be like not to have that every day.

Warren will still be with us, which is a blessing. The house would seem so empty with only Bob and me here! But Warren plans to start a full-time program at Columbus State in the fall, along with a part-time job. So I anticipate that he will be less of a presence here than he has been. Whether that is a good or bad thing I don't quite know yet. Feels like it could go either way. Or maybe it's both. I guess we have to experience it to find out.

But I need to remember that all of that is still about three months away. For now, I have the summer. Just over a month from now will be Red, White and Boom and the 4th of July. Later that month is the Morgan/Beasley/Russell family reunion. Plus plenty of cookouts and baseball games and hikes and al fresco dining and other summer activities waiting to pop up. So other than working with Sam to make sure he has everything he needs for his departure, I plan to try to live firmly in the present. If I can do that, I think this could be a very good summer! And the fall? I'll worry about that tomorrow.