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· Folding chairs on a green lawn, 65 degrees and sunny, a perfect graduation day. An American flag whips in the wind behind the podium. My sister, who has begun running daily and looks fantastic, grins at us from under her mortarboard. My mother, in a rose colored shirt, beams with all her chicks around her (all but one). My father, always antsy at things like this, gets up to go to the men’s room at least fifteen times in an hour.
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· My sister mingles afterward, she is glowing. I am introduced to a friend – “This is my sister.” “Oh,” says the friend, “this must be the sister who everyone thinks is really old, but is actually younger than you!” “No,” says my sister, “this one is the old one.” I decide it’s a compliment.
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· The party afterwards, at a family owned Bed and Breakfast. We pass out the presents we’ve brought – two graduations, two birthdays, one Mothers Day. My brother puts on his new Old Navy swim trunks and wears them for the rest of the weekend. My sister wears her necklace that I bought from an antique store.
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· The B&B fills up with distant relatives. An old woman, my father’s aunt, who has outlived every other member of her generation (brothers, sisters, in-laws, cousins), hands me a gift. Give that to your sister who got married, she says. I kiss her cheek and say I will, then return a few moments later to thank her, knowing she won’t realize it’s the same person.
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· No one can tell my sisters and I apart. Not even the blonde is exempt. No, I’m RG. No, I’m C, that over there is Baby. No, A’s not here. These are the phrases of the weekend. We joke about nametags.
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· I put my foot in my mouth three times with my Uncle Steve and family. Big huge foot-in-mouth moments. Impossible to backpedal moments. They were kind about them and helped me laugh through them.
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· My father’s cousin’s grandchildren, three of them, are everywhere. Somehow the pint-sized dictators get us all playing duck duck goose, my grown siblings and me. Jokes aplenty about how hard it is to leap up from a sitting position. I get tagged by an eight year old who runs circles around me.
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· I ask my baby sister, about to turn 18, if she feels old. She says “Only when I have to tell people I have a sister who’s thirty.” Not thirty yet, my dear. No aging me before my time.
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On Saturday night, we go out to a brewery to have dinner at 9pm. The Professor and I share a plate of fried chicken. The kids practically choke to death laughing at my sloppy eating. My dad orders a beer, and after three swallows trades with my mother for her iced tea, which we all knew he would do.
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Sunday morning the Professor and I see one of his old friends for brunch. We talk too long, and it puts us home late, but we don’t mind. 8pm on Sunday night we arrive at home after 8 hours of driving, and enjoy a frozen pizza and a couple of Coronas in front of a black and white movie. Bliss.
5 thoughts on “Snapshots from a Pennsylvania Graduation”
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that was weird. I went to type in a comment about the last blog, and when I came back, this one was here. Freaked me out a little. So, does it not make you a little sad that the ENTIRE (not just immediate) family showed up to Cakis\’ graduation and I never got so much as a card from anyone else (that I can remember). Curse of not being the favorit.
i love the closeness between you and your siblings. i think that is just tops! i can just feel the love, support, and friendship that you all share through your writing and it is marvelous! how wonderful to know that in this age of broken families, your family is still strong and supportive, even though you\’re separated by distance. thank you letting us into your family circle. you\’re family is beautiful!
ugh! not "you\’re," but rather "your."
I love your family and I don\’t know any of them but you! You guys sound so cute and close and I love that you all make such an effort to get together for important events. Makes me miss my family!
Amanda 🙂
I love hearing about big families as I grew up with only my brother & parents…all other family is overseas. Sounds like such a fun weekend!
I agree – the ending is complete bliss…comfort food, brew, movie….ahhhh 🙂