Date: Tue, 28 Sep 2010 23:20:30 EDT
From: Bwstories8@aol.com
Subject: Castaway Hotel: Grand Reopening - Book 9, Chapters 35 - 36

The Castaway Hotel: Grand Reopening --Book 9 - by BW         
Copyright 2010 by billwstories
Chapter 35 -- Easter to Commencement.    

Now that I'd been able to speak with Sammy and Little Ricky 
about their college plans and had also worked out the final 
details of the commitment ceremony with the boys that were 
going to be involved in it, I was able to turn my attention to the 
upcoming religious holiday.  The boys decided to take it easy 
Saturday night, while Jake and I were busy getting everything 
ready for Easter dinner.  I also took some time to color Easter 
eggs with Jesse.  He had asked if he could do it, so I offered to 
give him a hand.  Once Andrew heard what we were going to 
do, he wanted to join us.  Once we started, each boy announced 
he was going to make a special egg for Joshie, which I thought 
was cute.  

Sunday morning, Jesse and Andrew came down first.  I 
allowed them to look for the Easter eggs and their Easter 
baskets, since they were the only two I still prepared a basket 
for.  I had a collection of other goodies anyone could select 
from, which we kept in the dining room.  This way, no one lost 
out, no matter how old they were.  

Andrew let Jesse find most of the eggs and Jesse seemed to 
enjoy doing it.  I think watching his enthusiasm as he searched 
for these items, we began to assume this was either something 
he hadn't had a chance to do previously or it brought back 
memories of some of the better times he'd had when he was 
younger.  Once all of the eggs had been located and accounted 
for, we placed them in a large bowl, so anyone could crack 
them open to eat.  

Once the other boys started to come downstairs, Jake and I 
fixed breakfast, in preparation to our attending the Easter 
service.  As always, it was joyous and upbeat celebration and 
little Joshie was as good as gold throughout the entire service.  
Dion held him most of the time, but Trey took Joshie for a few 
minutes when Joshie started to get a little fussy.  This gave 
Dion time to pull a bottle out of the diaper bag and get it ready 
to feed his son.  Other than a rather loud burp after eating, 
Joshie hardly made a sound, so he didn't distract from what 
was going on.  He was a very good baby and content to have his 
fathers hold him.  

After the service, we chatted briefly with a few of the members 
of the congregation and waited patiently for the majority of the 
parishioners to leave.  Once that happened, I gave the pastor 
the final details he had asked me about earlier and he said it 
took care of his remaining concerns.  I thanked him for his 
help and for everything he had done for us over the years.

Once we left the church, we returned home and prepared for 
our big Easter meal.  We were going to hold it earlier than our 
normal dinnertime, so the college men would finish early 
enough to return to their campuses, without having to rush.  
Since this was also the last time some of them would be going 
back to these particular campuses, we didn't want their final 
semester there to start off with bad memories.  Therefore, I 
planned our meal early enough to allow them plenty of leeway 
to drive back and get situated, without having to drive fast or 
act in a reckless manner.

The boys watched a movie, while Jake and I put the finishing 
touches on the meal, and then we waited for the others to 
arrive.  Before long, our extended family began to show up, but 
this year we would be missing several members.  My biological 
children, Frankie and Duck wouldn't be with us, for different 
reasons.  Duck was spending this Easter with his girlfriend and 
her parents and I had told my children they didn't have to 
come, because the expense of the trip would far outweigh the 
amount of time they would be able to spend with us.  Frankie, 
of course, was still in the army and his duties kept him from 
attending.  

There would also be another important difference this year, 
and that was the Novaks would also be with us.  Shelly had 
ridden home with the boys and I had them invite her and her 
parents to join us, so they could spend time with Joshie too.  
The Novaks were appreciative of our offer and accepted 
immediately, which pleased me.  I didn't want them to feel as if 
they were outsiders and hoped they would play a big part in 
Joshie's life as well, so I was thrilled they had agreed to have 
Easter dinner with us.

Everyone was in a very good mood and I made certain to 
introduce everyone to each of the Novaks.  Many of the 
extended family had met Shelly at our New Year's Eve party 
or had heard her sing at the Christmas concert, which they had 
attended in order to watch Dion perform.  However, only a few 
of them knew her parents, but everyone greeted them warmly.  

Throughout the day, our various guests also chatted with the 
college students and asked how they were doing, their plans for 
the summer and what they intended to do after they finished 
their schooling.  The boys responded by filling them in about 
everything we had discussed earlier.  This included the fact 
that Danny, Brandon and Kevin would all be furthering their 
education and some of the others would be changing schools, so 
they could be with their partners.  The extended family seemed 
to be very interested, as well as quite pleased about how things 
were working out for the boys.  They also assured the boys 
they were looking forward to attending the commitment 
ceremony, which the boys had first announced on New Year's 
Eve.  

Jesse's mother also seemed very positive about everything that 
was discussed and thanked the college boys for setting such a 
fine example for the younger boys.  I wasn't sure how to take 
her comment, because in my heart I believed she still had 
reservations concerning the commitment ceremony and was a 
little uncomfortable with the fact that some of the boys were 
gay.  I think this might have been due in part because of what 
John had done to her son, although I tried my best to explain 
that what John did had nothing to do with being gay.  I believe 
that even after hearing me out, she still harbored reservations 
concerning my explanation.  I think this might have been born 
out in some of the comments she had made previously, even 
though she later confessed she was glad the boys were 
committing themselves to a single partner.  I felt this showed 
some progress on her part, but I don't think we're totally out 
of the woods where she is concerned.  

We ended up having a very nice, relaxing meal and I truly 
enjoyed having all of these people with us.  Once we were 
finished eating, I began to urge the college boys to get their 
things together, so they could head back to their campuses for 
the final month of classes.  In a way, it was sad to see them go, 
but I knew they'd be returning again shortly, so it wasn't too 
bad.  

While they were running about and packing up their things, 
the Novaks spent a little more time with Joshie, before taking 
Shelly home so she get her belongings together too.  The boys 
had told her they wanted her to be ready by the time they 
arrived to pick her up and she assured them she would.  The 
Novaks all thanked us for the invitation and for allowing them 
to spend time with the baby.  They said they'd enjoyed the 
meal and the company, so they looked forward to seeing us all 
again soon.  We told them we looked forward to having them 
join us in the future, as well.  

Once we said good-bye to the college boys and they were on 
their way back to school, the rest of our guests began to leave 
too.  Over the next hour, Jake and I said so long to the rest of 
our extended family and then cleaned up from dinner, with 
help from the boys that were still at home.  I'm certainly glad 
they're still willing to lend a hand with the chores.  

After we were done cleaning up, I spent some time with Joshie 
and tried to get us both back into our normal routine.  He had 
a tendency to slip out of our schedule when his daddy and 
poppy were home, because they do things a little differently.  
They wake up later and go to bed after we normally do, so now 
we had to reconnect and get back into our groove.  

Jake and I did talk a little more about the Shannon-Nick 
relationship, especially now that Shannon was planning to 
transfer schools.  I told Jake he shouldn't have been surprised 
by his request, seeing how much Shannon and Nick seemed to 
miss each other when they were apart.  I then explained that 
by allowing Shannon to make the move and by supporting it, it 
was serving as a means to strengthen their father-son ties.  I 
also felt it was helping to unite all three of them as a family.  I 
told him he should feel honored that both boys had talked us 
into allowing Nick to call him Dad, instead of using that name 
for me.  It showed that Nick thought very highly of Jake too 
and I think it helped to assuage any fears Jake still might have 
had about agreeing to let Shannon transfer to Oklahoma State.

I also reminded Jake that since the boys had agreed to be very 
careful when it came to sex, they had been keeping their 
promise.  Not only that, but Nick assured me, many times, that 
he would never do anything again that might put Shannon at 
risk.  I told Jake this alone should be enough of an indication 
about how strongly Nick feels about his son, if Nick's swearing 
off being with other guys hadn't done it already.  I think Jake 
was finally starting to realize that Nick was being sincere and 
faithful, so it was time he started thinking of both of them as 
his sons, not merely Shannon.  

I also suggested to Jake that he contact the Lawrences, since 
they were his son's 'in-laws' of sorts and Shannon and he 
would be spending Thanksgiving with them next year.  Nick 
had already cleared it with his family, so Jake needed to make 
some overtures now too.  Even though they already knew each 
other, this time the situation would be slightly different and it 
was important for Jake to do this, so it wouldn't be awkward 
when he joined them for the holiday.  This might be the first of 
many holidays they spent together and none of us knew how 
often this would happen.  After I mentioned they'd be seeing a 
lot more of each other over the next couple of years, Jake 
agreed he'd get in touch with the Lawrences and set something 
up.  Then, he thanked me for all I had done to help keep peace 
between his son and him, but I merely responded that we took 
care of family first.  

At the end of April, I heard from the school board president 
again.  He contacted me to chat for a bit, so he could find out 
how I was enjoying retirement and how the baby was doing.  
After we discussed those topics thoroughly, he told me my 
replacement was doing a very good job, but I was still missed.  
I thanked him for his kind words and admitted I wasn't 
surprised that the new superintendent was doing well.  He was 
bright, energetic and a very likeable guy, so I was happy it was 
working out for all of them.  

Afterward, the board president also mentioned they were still 
having occasional problems with my old friend, the former 
board member, but he had toned his rhetoric down a bit.  The 
board president suggested this was possibly due to how many 
other groups had opened their arms and reached out to all 
members of the school community and the old board member's 
support had diminished dramatically after his run in with the 
law.  I was also told the old board member had raised a few 
questions about some of the activities that had been slated, but 
this time around it was more to discover the underlying facts 
and learn more about what was planned, rather than spout his 
homophobic propaganda.  The board president did say that 
possibly seeing three of the four officers of the club were 
straight this year, and the fact that Dion got Shelly pregnant, 
just might have convinced the guy he had not been seeing 
things clearly and had been wrong in some of his suppositions.  

The board president went on to say that he didn't know if 
that's what did it or if the guy might have mellowed.  He said it 
might also be due to the fact that I wasn't there for him to 
challenge or that I had embarrassed him enough in the past 
that he didn't want to continue looking like an ass.  I suggested 
it might be a combination of all of those factors and the board 
president said I was probably right.  

The board president then informed me there was another 
reason he had called, other than to just be sociable.  He had 
also been directed by the Board of Education to invite me to 
this year's retirement dinner.  He stated that some of this 
year's retirees had requested that I be included and it was also 
strongly recommended by the current superintendent.  The 
board president then added another incentive, although it 
wasn't necessary, and stated the district was covering the bill, 
so I dared not refuse.  I told him the expense had never even 
crossed my mind and I would love to attend, no matter who 
paid the bill.  He thanked me and explained I'd be a fool if I 
didn't let the district pay for my meal.  He then gave me the 
information I needed, before we hung up.  It was nice to know 
that there were still people out there that thought of me from 
time to time.  

A couple of weeks later, I attended the retirement dinner and 
was thrilled to visit with many of my former colleagues again.  
Not only were the teachers who were retiring there, which 
included some people that had worked for me at the middle 
school and others I had taught with, but my old secretary was 
there as well.  I had really missed seeing her on a daily basis 
and it was good to be able to chat with her again.  She told me 
she liked her new boss, although she still missed me.  I 
informed her I was glad she liked working for my replacement 
and thanked her for her kindness.  

The elementary, middle school and high school principals were 
also there, along with the new superintendent and the entire 
Board of Education.  It was really a great gathering and I 
enjoyed speaking with each of them again.  

During these various conversations, I was not only asked how I 
was doing and if I was enjoying my retirement and free time, 
but they also wanted to know about the baby.  My friends 
asked how I was handling being the 'stay at home 
grandfather,' so I told them I was thoroughly loving every 
moment and wouldn't have it any other way.  I went on to 
explain how the baby and I had really bonded and how I was 
enjoying him on so many different levels, something I didn't 
have time to do when my own children were little.  Sure, I had 
spent time with my children and enjoyed and relished every 
second I spent with them, but I was not around as much as I 
am with Joshie now.  For this reason, I'm enjoying a much 
more intense and deeper relationship with him, such as often 
occurs between stay-at-home moms and their offspring.

Everyone seemed truly happy things were working out so well 
for me and some even mentioned they had heard about the 
upcoming commitment ceremony the boys were having.  They 
said it was quite a hot topic of conversation in some corners, 
but very little of the gossip and talk was negative.  They 
informed me that most of the comments they had heard were 
that most people were pleased the boys were making such a 
commitment.  These people also said they felt it was a shame 
the boys couldn't just get married.  I thought that was great 
news and pleased to hear that many people were starting to 
come around to this point of view.  

Overall, the dinner was nice and I made sure to spend some of 
my time with each of the retirees too.  I reminisced about old 
times with them and joked about some of the different 
experiences we had shared working together.  Some of them 
even teased that when they first heard about what I was doing, 
when I first started taking in the boys, they thought I was 
having a mid-life crisis.  A few said they had been worried that 
when I had resolved my issues, whatever they were at the time, 
I wouldn't want to deal with the boys any longer.  Hearing this, 
I quipped back that I must still have those same issues to 
resolve, because I had quit work to raise my grandson.  They 
merely laughed at the idea.  

None of what they said was done in a derogatory or demeaning 
manner.  They were only saying that at first they didn't realize 
how serious I was about giving these boys a better shot at life, 
but now they were glad I did.  They then told me they were 
certain this new venture, with my grandson, would turn out 
just as nicely, as they added their best wishes to my endeavor.  

As the dinner was drawing to a close, some of those attending 
asked me if I'd mind running home and getting Joshie, so they 
could meet my namesake.  At first I thought they were joking, 
but when I realized they weren't, I was still hesitant.  Then I 
looked at my watch and realized it was still early and far from 
Joshie's bedtime, so I quickly phoned Jake and asked if he'd 
mind getting Joshie ready so I could bring him here.  I'd told 
Jake I'd be there shortly to pick them both up, since Joshie's 
car seat was in my vehicle, and Jake agreed.  I then excused 
myself and went to get them.  

When we returned a few minutes later, I introduced everyone 
to Jake and Joshie.  Most of them knew Jake already, so it was 
mostly for them to say hello to each other, before my little ray 
of sunshine took over the spotlight.  Everyone got a kick out of 
him and many also commented on how much Joshie looked 
like Dion.  They also told me how wonderful it was that Dion 
had decided to name the baby after me, so I admitted I was 
greatly honored that he had done it.  I also let them hold 
Joshie, if they wanted.  

I don't know what it is about older people and babies, but 
suddenly this roomful of adults began talking baby talk and 
making silly faces.  I was getting a bigger kick out of watching 
them making fools of themselves than I was in seeing Joshie's 
reactions to what they were doing.  

Joshie was very good about being passed around the room, but 
I guess it comes from being passed around our large family.  
He has come to accept different people holding him, although 
whenever he glanced up at Jake or me he would break into a 
huge grin.  I guess this meant he obviously recognized who we 
were.  

After we'd spent some time doing this, we said our good-byes 
and took Joshie home.  He fell asleep on the ride back, so I just 
changed him into his nightclothes and put him in his crib.  He 
never even woke up.  He is such a good baby.  

Over the next couple of weeks, I had a great deal I wanted to 
do, so I'd be ready when the college boys returned home for 
the summer.  I had their graduation party to prepare for, as 
well as getting things together for the commitment ceremony.  
I cleaned the house from top to bottom, sent everyone's suits to 
be dry-cleaned, ordered the various things we would need for 
the two events and made certain the extended family and 
friends knew what would be happening and when.  We were 
going to try to hold everything on the same weekend, so those 
traveling to join us could be part of both events in one trip.  

The college boys were graduating first and I suspected there 
might be some conflicts in when the ceremonies would be held, 
but it worked out that there weren't.  Brandon's graduation 
ceremony was going to be held on Saturday, May 6th, while 
Danny wouldn't graduate until the following Saturday, May 
13th.  Kevin's college was holding their commencement on 
Thursday, May 18th and the high school boys' graduation 
ceremony was being held on Saturday, May 20th, so everything 
seemed to be falling into place.  

Since the high school graduation was the final event, we would 
hold the combined party during the afternoon and evening 
after the high school boys' ceremony.  Even though the party 
probably wouldn't end until early morning, everyone would 
still have to get up and attend church the next day.  That 
would be followed by brunch and then we'd go back to the 
church to hold the commitment ceremony.  

I quickly ran all of this by Jake, to make certain I hadn't 
missed or overlooked anything, and then we set up a schedule 
for home.  It would be a very hectic couple of weeks, but I 
knew we'd get through it, and hopefully still in one piece.  



The Castaway Hotel: Grand Reopening --Book 9 - by BW         
Copyright 2010 by billwstories
Chapter 36 -- Many Reasons to Celebrate.    

The graduation season was now upon us and Brandon's 
commencement came first.  Unfortunately, this also meant his 
parents would have to fly to Pennsylvania twice -- first to see 
him graduate with his baccalaureate and then two weeks later 
for the graduation party and commitment ceremony.  I called 
the O'Hara's to apologize for this, but they told me not to 
worry about it.  They said I was doing what was best for the 
majority of people that would be attending the commitment 
ceremony and I didn't have any control over the date of 
Brandon's baccalaureate ceremony.  I thanked them for their 
understanding and then helped them make their plans.  

Brandon's commencement was being held on Saturday, May 6, 
so his parents were flying in on Friday, so they could spend 
some time with him.  Since Brandon was in charge of one of 
our SUV's, he was able to use it to pick his parents up at the 
airport and drive them around.  The younger boys, Jake and I 
were planning to leave early and drive to Pittsburgh on 
Saturday, so we could also attend the ceremony.  

We arrived well before the ceremony, so we had plenty of time 
to spend with Brandon and his parents.  They were quite taken 
with Joshie when they met him and Mrs. O'Hara's maternal 
instincts immediately kicked in.  From her actions, I could tell 
she was hoping Danny and Brandon might adopt sometime in 
the future, because it was quite apparent she would love to 
have grandchildren to dote over.  

A short time later, we drove to the location where the 
baccalaureate ceremony was going to be held and Brandon 
took off to join the other graduates.  After Brandon left, the 
rest of us went and located a row of seats.  Unfortunately, a lot 
of other people had gotten there ahead of us, so our seats were 
located about a third of the way back.  We did take seats on the 
aisle, so we'd be able to get out and take pictures when the time 
came.  

While we were waiting for the ceremony to begin, I glanced 
through the program and noticed that Brandon's name had a 
special notation beside it.  I glanced down at the legend to see 
what the symbol meant and quickly discovered Brandon was 
graduating Summa Cum Laude, which is Latin for 'with 
highest honors/praise.'  I knew he had been doing very well in 
his course work, in fact all three of this year's graduates had 
been extremely successful in their studies, but I guess I didn't 
realize exactly how well he had been doing.  

I was going to point this out to his parents, but I overheard 
them commenting to each other and realized they had noticed 
this fact as well.  I don't think Brandon had mentioned it to 
them beforehand, but now they were beaming with pride over 
this honor, as they should be.  I knew we'd have to make a big 
deal out of this later, so I also pointed this fact out to the other 
boys and explained what it meant.  I was also hoping it might 
inspire them during their academic pursuits as well.  

The ceremony was a rather long and drawn out affair, and Mr. 
O'Hara and Jake went up and took several shots of Brandon 
as he was receiving his degree.  Jake had offered to do this for 
me, since I was taking care of Joshie.  Jake didn't mind 
holding Joshie for short periods of time, but he didn't care to 
be left alone to handle all of Joshie's needs, so this worked out 
well.  

When the ceremony concluded, we found Brandon and 
congratulated him.  We then took many, many pictures of him 
with his parents, then a few of him with Jake and me, and 
finally a few more with him and the other boys.  Brandon even 
held Joshie in these last shots.  

Once the picture taking session ended, Brandon explained that 
his final Grade Point Average (GPA) was 3.88 and he now had 
his B.S. (Bachelor of Science) in Biological Sciences.  He has 
also been accepted into University of Pittsburgh's School of 
Dental Medicine, beginning in the fall, which will take him 
another three to four years to complete.  

We then went out to lunch with Brandon and his parents, so 
we could spend a little more time with them, before we took the 
family back home.  Brandon was staying in Pittsburgh, so he 
could spend more time with his parents, but it was also because 
he had to drive some of the others back home.  Those boys still 
had another week of school and Brandon was going to stay 
there, so he could bring them back with him.  I told him 
several times how much I appreciated him doing this for me, 
but he assured me it was no problem.

It was a nice, yet exhausting, day and we had a great time 
being with the O'Haras again.  They were spending the rest of 
the weekend with Brandon, before they returned home, so we 
left shortly after our meal with them and their son.  I think the 
other boys were all glad they came with us, but were now 
equally as happy it was over.    

The following weekend we had to drive to Penn State for 
Danny's commencement, which was being held on Saturday, 
May 13.  This time, I didn't have to take Joshie with me and 
was able to leave him with Dion, who had returned home the 
night before.  This drive was similar to the last one, except we 
were heading north, not west.  We also didn't have to deal with 
big city traffic, although there certainly was a considerable 
amount of traffic, once we got near the campus.  

We met Danny at his dorm and he rode with us to where the 
ceremony was being held.  He then took off to join the rest of 
his class and we went to find seats.  While we were waiting I 
looked at the program and noted Danny was also graduating 
Summa Cum Laude.  What is it with these boys not telling us 
about this honor or making a big deal of it before we got to the 
ceremony?  

It turned out to be another typical baccalaureate ceremony, 
although it didn't seem to last quite as long as Brandon's 
graduation had.  I snapped several pictures of Danny as he 
received his degree and then we took even more pictures after 
the ceremony ended.  We took several pictures of Danny in his 
cap and gown, some more with Jake and me and others with 
Danny and his brothers.   When the photo op ended, I asked 
Danny about graduating with honors and why he hadn't told 
us.

 "It's not that big of a deal," he answered.  "I actually had to 
do that well in order to get into medical school."

"I'm sure they would have accepted a Magna Cum Laude too," 
I informed him.   Magna Cum Laude means 'with great honors 
or praise' and is the level below Summa Cum Laude.  

"Possibly, but I didn't want to take that chance," Danny 
responded.  

 "I am curious about something," I continued.  "What was 
your final GPA?"  

"It was 3.92," Danny announced, in a matter-of-fact way.  
However, I did notice a slight grin spreading across his face.  

"Danny, that's outstanding," I responded.  "I mean you can't 
do much better than that out of a 4.0 system."  Danny just 
shrugged it off and mentioned it was time to be moving on.  

Danny now had his B.S. in Premedical Medicine, or what most 
people call Pre-Med.  He will be attending the University of 
Pittsburgh School of Medicine in the fall, now that he and 
Brandon had decided they wanted to be together during the 
conclusion of their studies.  For some reason, the boys no 
longer felt the other would distract him from his studies.  I 
guess with those GPA's, their study habits were pretty well 
ingrained.  

After the ceremony, we took Danny out to eat and chat a bit.  I 
kept telling him how impressed I was with his accomplishment 
and he thanked me, but played it down.  He only said that he 
knew if he was going to get into a top flight Medical School, 
he'd have to have as close to a 4.0 as possible and I understood 
exactly what he was telling me.  However, I explained that 
knowing what you needed and actually doing it are two 
different things, so he should be very proud of what he'd 
achieved.  

Once we finished our meal, we dropped Danny off at his dorm.  
He had another of our SUV's and would be driving some of the 
other college men back, so we left him there and returned 
alone.  

Kevin's commencement came next, but it was being held on 
Thursday, May 18.  I thought having it in the middle of the 
week was a bit odd, but it worked out so we could attend all 
three graduations.  This time we headed east, to Philadelphia 
and Temple's ceremony.  

As we had with the others, we met Kevin beforehand, but he 
was living in an apartment off campus, not a dorm room.  I 
had given Kevin and Vinnie permission to do this, and then 
Trey joined them when he went there too.  So now, we collected 
the three boys, so we could head to the ceremony.  Dion was 
happy to see Trey again, and Trey was thrilled to see both Dion 
and Joshie.  It was very cute to watch them as they reunited.  

We took Kevin out to eat before the ceremony, since we didn't 
know for certain how late the graduation would run.  We 
drove over to the dorms before we ate, so I could invite Jeff to 
go with us too, but he had already left with his mother.  I was 
sorry we'd missed him, because Jeff had been Kevin's 
roommate when he first came to Temple.  He was also the 
young man Kevin had switched scholarships with at the 
awards banquet, back when they were seniors in high school.  

After having a lovely meal, during which I had a chance to 
speak with Kevin, I discovered he was also graduating with 
honors.  He was graduating Summa Cum Laude too, with a 
3.87 GPA.  Of course that earned him a little ribbing too, since 
his GPA was the lowest of the three who had graduated with 
honors this year.  Brandon had beaten him by .01 of a point, 
while Danny slaughtered him by .05 of a point.  

We then took Kevin and dropped him off with the other 
graduates, before we went to locate seats.  We took up a bit 
more space this time, since more boys were home and eager to 
come with us.  In fact, we had used two vehicles to make this 
trip.  

Once we got our programs, I quickly scanned it to find Kevin's 
name.  There it was with its designation of Summa Cum 
Laude.  Damn!  Did I do something right or was there 
something in the water while they were growing up.  Anyways, 
here was another son receiving accolades and I was very proud 
of him as well, as I advised him earlier, when he let us know 
this was going to happen.  

I also noticed Jeff's name and discovered he was graduating 
Magna Cum Laude, which wasn't too shabby either.  Both 
boys were receiving their B.S. in Biochemistry, a curriculum 
that is most likely as difficult as it sounds.  They would both be 
coming back in the fall to attend Temple's School of 
Pharmacy, which would take them another three to four years 
to complete.  It was a difficult road to hoe, but they were both 
determined to do this.  

After discovering that all three graduates had been near the 
top of their respective classes, and after hearing them joke 
about it over dinner, I think it had a great impact on the 
others.  I believe some of the younger boys were now beginning 
to feel they would have to graduate with honors too, just to fit 
in.  I hope it doesn't put too much pressure on them, but some 
incentives can be good.  

This ceremony seemed to go quicker than the other two, but 
maybe that had something to do with being held on a 
Thursday.  I took some snapshots of Kevin's receiving his 
degree and we took a whole bunch more afterward.  When we 
finished, Kevin followed us back in the 4Runner, with Vinnie 
riding with him.  They had already loaded their things in the 
trailer attached behind it and were ready to return home as 
well.  Trey, however, rode with us, so he could be with Dion 
and Joshie.  

We didn't have long to recuperate though, before the last of 
the graduation ceremonies was upon us.   We spent Friday 
setting up the tents and filling them with the tables and chairs I 
was able to borrow.  Before we finished this task, Brandon's 
parents arrived, and a short time later, Nick's parents also 
showed up.  It was only late afternoon, so we spent part of the 
evening chatting with them and then we went out to eat.  After 
we returned to the house, the rest of us excused ourselves and 
left Nick, Shannon, Jake, Danny and Brandon alone with Nick 
and Brandon's parents.  It gave the O'Haras an opportunity to 
spend some time alone with Brandon and Danny and gave the 
Lawrences and Jake some time with Nick and Shannon.  After 
all, this weekend they each would be gaining a son-in-law.  

Besides allowing them some time alone, I had my own family to 
contend with.  My biological children and grandchildren began 
arriving during the early evening hours and I was thrilled to 
see them all again.  The only ones that weren't going to be here 
were Elizabeth and Tim, and that was only because Elizabeth 
was due to give birth any day now.  Seeing that was the 
situation, we happily excused them -- this time.  

I did stay up quite late playing with my grandchildren and 
then talking to my children.  I can't believe how drastically 
their attitudes have changed over the past year, since most of 
them had made the journey from not accepting Jake and I as a 
couple, to openly welcoming their brothers' commitments to 
their partners.  Let's just say, I was truly amazed, impressed 
and very pleased.  

They also commented how very proud they were of Danny, 
Brandon and Kevin, once they heard their GPA's and 
discovered each had graduated Summa Cum Laude.  All of 
them had gone to college as well, but the best any of them had 
done was graduating Cum Laude, which is the lowest of the 
three honors classifications.  Needless to say, they felt if this 
trio was bright enough to do that well in college, then they 
most likely knew what they were doing by going through with 
this commitment ceremony.  

The next day, Saturday, May 20, the high school boys, Sammy 
and Little Ricky, graduated.  Playfully, both boys assured me 
they wouldn't be graduating with honors, but then quickly 
reminded me they had already been accepted into college.  I 
felt that was good enough and didn't say anything more.  

It seemed strange to me that I was watching this graduation 
ceremony while sitting amongst the other families.  Not only 
wasn't I the Superintendent any longer, but I wasn't even a 
school district employee, and that had never happened to me 
before.  At least when my other children graduated, I was 
either a teacher or the middle school principal, but this year I 
was merely a parent.  It felt really strange.  Anyway, it was an 
afternoon ceremony and I was able to get some fairly decent 
shots as both boys accepted their diplomas.  They each looked 
relieved that their long trek through the public school system 
was finally over, as their older brothers had when they 
graduated from the local school district.  

Now that these two had gradated, it only left Andrew and Jesse 
in the local school district, since Joshie still had a few years to 
go until he would be enrolled.  Andrew would be in eleventh 
grade and a junior in the fall, while Jesse would be starting 
seventh grade.  Dang! I just realized Jesse would be a junior in 
high school when Joshie was beginning his education 
experience and entering Kindergarten.  

Once the ceremony ended, we took a bunch of pictures of the 
graduates with Jake and me, and then more of them with 
different combinations of their brothers.  Once we finished 
doing that, we left the Grand Am with them, so they could 
spend time saying their good-byes.  The rest of us went home, 
so we could finish getting ready for the graduation party.  

Shortly after we arrived home, the caterer showed up and 
began setting up his things in the large tent we had put up the 
day before.  While I was making certain everything was where 
I wanted it, Jake went inside and began bringing out the two 
cakes, while Danny and Brandon offered to run out and pick 
up the keg I had reserved.  I thanked them for doing this and 
the rest of us finished setting up, as the guests began to arrive.  

The party got going very quickly and before long everyone was 
having a good time, or at least they seemed to be.  Once things 
were going well, we called all the graduates over to cut the 
cakes.  There were two, one for the high school boys that read, 
'Congratulations Grads of '06,' and another for the college 
grads.  Their cake read, 'Our hats are off to the Summa Cum 
Laude Trio,' and there were designs of a dozen mortarboards 
being thrown into the air.  

I think both sets of grads appreciated their cakes and the party 
continued until after 3:00 the next morning.  That wouldn't 
have been so bad, but we had church and the commitment 
ceremony a few hours later.  We took what had to be taken 
indoors and left the rest.  We'd get it after we got home from 
church, when we came back to make sure everything was 
ready for after the ceremony at the church.  

When the alarm went off, it seemed as if I hadn't gotten much 
sleep at all, and actually none of us had.  I was contemplating 
skipping church this one week, but how could we do that, when 
the ceremony was going to be held there later?  It was quite a 
dilemma.  

Anyways, I got everyone up and ready to go, and somehow we 
all managed to drag our bodies there.  Surprisingly, I didn't 
even catch anyone falling asleep during the service.  When it 
ended, our pastor told us he'd see us again at 3:00 and 
confirmed that he was looking forward to presiding over the 
ceremony.  I just hoped we all managed to stay awake long 
enough to go through with it.  

After stopping for a very harried brunch, we rushed home to 
clean up from the graduation party we held the day before.  
The boys were all very good about helping to do this and 
before long we had the place looking as it had prior to the start 
of that party.

The caterer would be showing up again to set up, except this 
time the food served would be more like what you would find 
at a wedding reception.  This included two cakes, which we 
would cut at the end of the festivities.  There was one for each 
pair of couples and was meant to wish all of them a sweet start 
to their lives together.  

Once we had taken care of all of this, we went into the house to 
clean up again, since we had worked up a sweat cleaning up.  
The boys then put on their suits and we were ready to go.  Half 
would be riding down with Jake and going into one room to 
wait, while the other half would be riding with me and going 
into another room until they were called.  

After Jake and I took the boys to their respective rooms, we 
located the boutonnieres that had been delivered for this 
occasion.  Carefully, we pinned a red rose, backed with baby's 
breath, on the suit jacket lapel of each participant and then 
waited for the ceremony to begin.