Kid, You’ll Move Mountains!

How fast four years flies by!  It seems like it was just yesterday that I posted This Post explaining how we were moving our daughter, Laura Lee, out of the house and into her dorm room at LSU to begin her first semester at college.  And now… Well, Friday we traveled to Baton Rouge to attend her Graduation Ceremonies.  I’m telling you, where does the time go?  She graduated with the highest honors – Summa Cum Laude and we are very proud of her.  A lot of work went into her Bachelor's Degree and it was all worth it.  She’ll be teaching Third Grade in Baton Rouge starting in mid-July.

There’s a lot of mixed emotions with this big event.  Happy that she’s beginning a life on her own.  Proud of her success in the classroom and of her creativity and talents.  Protective of her as she goes out on her own.  Prayerful for her direction and continued success.  Sad as she’s officially stretching her wings and leaving the nest, flying out on her own.  Reflective and introspective as I wonder if we gave her the tools in her toolbox to enable her to go out and thrive on her own.

LSU has a Main Ceremony for all graduates in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center at 8AM.  The family arrived in Baton Rouge bright and early to cheer for her.  Let me back up a minute.  She didn’t want to go to the ceremony.  She said, “No one goes to the 8AM ceremony.  It is too early.”  We insisted that she worked too hard to miss this big day and she begrudgingly showed up.

What if you threw a party and nobody showed up?

She was right!  The picture above shows the total number of graduates attending the 8 AM ceremony.  No doubt, the few that were there were likely brow-beaten by their parents to attend.  Laura sent us texts during the ceremony that said, “Look at me – one of the 8 people that is here!” and “I think I’ll do my nails.  Is that okay?”

2016 Spring Graduates of Louisiana State University set a record as the largest graduating class in history with a total of 4,102 graduating.  LSU has enrollment of 31,527 in the Fall of 2015.  Here’s some neat statistics:

Graduates in Laura Lee's class represent:

·         61 of 64 Louisiana Parishes

·         46 US States

·         61 Foreign Countries

·         The oldest graduate was 81 years old

·         The youngest graduate was 20 years old

·         Females made up 54% of the graduating class

We took a lot of photos to capture the big day.  Here’s our girl amidst the throng of fellow graduates on the floor of the PMAC after the ceremony.  She might be a little hard to pick out.

I did it!

Here’s our girl posing with the Bronze Mike the Tiger right in front of the live Mike the Tiger’s cage.

Stand right up and ROAR!

My Mom and Dad made the journey to hoot and holler for her and we snapped a photo of them with her under the “stately oaks and broad magnolias.”

Graduation with the Grandparents

And here’s the proud parents with the graduate:

And the brothers

Russ, Laura Lee & Benjamin

In front of Tiger Stadium in cap and gown:

On the ramp of the PMAC in front of Mike the Tiger’s tower.

Now, later throughout the day, each respective college convenes for the diploma ceremony.  This is where you get your name called and you walk across the stage, shake hands with the Dean and receive your diploma while your family screams and claps in happiness.  At 11 AM Laura Lee’s college, The College of Human Sciences and Education commenced the celebration.  I’m happy to say many more people attended!

If you look closely in the next picture you can see her and her name on the big screen receiving the piece of paper that represents many hours of hard work.

So proud of our girl:

We met at 1:15 for a celebratory meal at Juban’s.  Here’s the family smiling and about to enjoy a good meal and fellowship.  Juban’s is famous for their “Hallelujah Crab,” a fried soft-shelled crab stuffed with crawfish tails, shrimp and crabmeat, topped with Creolaise sauce.  The reason it is called Hallelujah crab is that it is arranged on the plate with the claws up in the air.  You can sort of see that on Dad’s plate below.  Hallelujah, also though, that Laura Lee graduated and did so well in her studies!

Here’s the pretty girl at the head of the table

And finally with flowers on the way out of the restaurant

Congrats Laura Lee!  We love you!

Juban’s appropriately had a special menu for the 2016 graduates and on it, the quoted a passage from Dr. Seuss’ “Oh the places You’ll Go!”  I read that book to Laura Lee when she was just a little bitty thing and I thought it was appropriate for the occasion.  I’ll share a few lines from it now:

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy girl who'll decide where to go.

And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So...
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea,
You're off the Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way!

It’s me again.  We love you, Laura Lee!  Happy Graduation and we wish you all the best that God has in store for you…