DAVID 'S HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION -MAY 21, 2009

21 MAY 2009

Here we are in Arizona land of heat and sunshine..... but not today! It started out a little overcast and 85 degrees. By the time we left the house to drive to David's graduation ceremony it was just starting to rain. Fortunately, when we were leaving I grabbed some kitchen trash bags to bring along .... "just in case". " Just in case", quickly seized the the moment and we were scrambling to get covered up so we could enjoy the ceremony in the outdoor football stadium. With in a few minutes we were wishing for a little heat and sunshine!!

Kelli had reserved four seats in the handicapped section for us to sit in since Poppa was in his wheelchair. We were truly blessed as our section was on the track field which was next to the seniors and podium.

There was a long procession of seniors marching in..... probably around 800 seniors. Since David was one of the 6 speakers for the entire program he was in the very first row facing the podium, and much to our delight on our side of the field!! Within a few minutes he glanced over to look for fans and there we were! Just in case we blended in, I took off my bold flowered silky top and flew it around a few times..... immediately he recognized us and gave us a big smile and wave! That was so comforting to know that he knew we were there with all those thousands of people looking down on the seniors.
Many wonderful people offered us tender kindness as we sat in the rain. I tried to cover up Carl and Poppa with the kitchen bags to hold their body heat. Several sweet spirits shared their personal wrap or blanket to help keep Poppa warm. Fortunately, Dad had brought his light weight jacket with a hood, but soon he was also drenched. The people behind us wanted us to take their only umbrella but when I refused it, they sweetly leaned over the fence to make sure that we were blessed with a little protection from their umbrellas.

Shortly after the program began David, the official "Student Body Videographer", was introduced to the audience. He quickly approached the stage and he stood before thousands. He was confident and spoke with great enthusiasm as he introduced two of his female classmates as the Salutatorians of this class. Once again he showed NO FEAR!!

The Valedictorian was a young woman named Megan. They introduced her as beautiful and exceptionally smart having a 4.7 GPA. They also said that she had received THE THOMAS S. MONSON scholarship to BYU. Several times during her address I was touched by the spirit and fought back tears... she not only did a marvelous job at speaking to her peers about their accomplishments, but she also gave great counsel and shared a tremendous amount of wisdom. She spoke about adversity and that through our examples we can changed others lives. I told Dad when the speech was finished that she did a "Brilliant Job" of connecting the kids and their futures to her speech. Later Kelli would share that this was the little girl she had taken care of when they lived in Chandler. In fact, Kelli had taken her to breakfast a few days earlier and she had given Megan a starfish necklace and shared the story associated with it. In Megan's address she read the starfish story. It seems that in retrospect, she might have been referring to Kelli when she spoke about... "through trials just one can be touch another to make a difference....." Since she told Kelli that she had been like her "second mom", it is highly possible. Could it be that the spirit that was so strong and tender during her talk, unknowingly could have been more of an eternal connection to David and Kelli which I felt??? I remember looking down and seeing my "goosebumps" standing tall!! The Lord does work in mysterious ways!! It is awesome to see that the Lord does have a plan... even when we don't hear HIS voice or see HIS hand.

The High School Advanced Vocal Ensemble sang "Shining Star" and before long most of the seniors were up dancing and having a wonderful time with the music. It was great to watch as 3 students started and as no one else stood they sat down.... just as others got up.... and then more and more. We all clapped, with and for them.

The Introduction of Graduates then began and DAVID ERIC was soon announced.
We were all cheering and grateful for his many accomplishments.... He was in the top 10% of his class and exceeds in all area of AIMS TESTING which noted that he would be receiving a Medallion.

Once the diplomas were given to a third of the class, Kelli found us and asked if we wanted to leave. At first I believe that we wanted to stay, but thinking of being in the rain.. longer, and standing in lines trying to leave, leaving early did have a ring of desire to it!! Kelli said that the Houghton side of the family had already exited and that she would stay to greet David. It saddened me that we weren't there to do that... but Poppa and Popee certainly needed to be out of the weather. I know that David realizes that we would have waited under other circumstances. We are so proud of him!!

Tomorrow morning there are plans for a game place. From 4 pm until 8 pm Carl and Kelli are hosting a graduation party at their house for David. Italian meatball sub sandwiches, salads and tater tots were served for dinner and Kelli's delicious Oreo cookie ice cream cake was the dessert! .... We can't wait to give him a hug and his presents....can't share yet.... It's a surprise!!