The Graduation
The Graduation
Graduation time is hard for me, I’m not sure exactly why, but my heart becomes heavy, and my eyes swell with tears. My throat chokes with emotion. I’m learning that sadness can morph into anger and resentment very easily if I am not careful. I found myself hating the fact that other people are happy and I am not. Sometimes it is so hard to pull myself out of the all-encompassing pit of self-pity and loathing. I couldn’t do it on this particular morning. I was drowning in my tears and sorrow. I tried to visit at my parents for coffee, but could barely hold myself together. I decided that I wasn’t fit for company, and I should go home to be alone. As I drove home, my eyes became blinded by my tears. I just couldn’t hold it in anymore. As I turned a corner, through my tears, I caught a glimpse of a frog. I had to turn around and go see this frog that caught my eye. As I pulled up, I saw a motorcycle with a smiling frog wearing a red bandanna around its neck on the back of the bike. I wanted to take a picture. As I parked and walked up to the bike, I noticed a license plate that said JESUS. When I walked around the front of the bike, resting on the seat was a beautiful leather vest with three crosses and a sunrise embroidered on the back and Jesus’s name across the bottom. The tears left my eyes as I took pictures of the bike and the frog. It’s not a coincidence to me that the bike was sitting outside of Mater Dolorosa Church in Plaucheville during a graduation ceremony. (The same church that Lauren graduated from high school posthumously) I was tempted to wait and meet the man who drove this bike, but I decided to go on, taking my message of faith with me. I left the parking lot with dried tears and a smile that radiated from within. I could have easily missed this frog if I had let myself be totally blinded by my tears. Instead, I was reminded to Fully Rely On God, in Jesus’ name. As I drove home, I was not comparing my sadness to another person’s happiness anymore, I was feeling blessed to know that Jesus and Lauren were waiting for me around the next corner, and every other one after that.
Tara Rodney
6/13/11
