My Jewel's graduation

 Today was the culmination of an 18-year journey, as my first born, my favorite, my Jewel walked the stage, flipped the tassel, and began her official farewell tour.

This is my own impromptu speech I gave during our celebration dinner with family and friends.

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Welcome, everyone. Family, friends, we're thankful you're here because you have all played a role in making Kathryn-Anne who she is today. 

I promised my wife that I would keep this speech short...

And so, I condensed it all into 18 points, 18 facts of Kathryn-Anne's life, one for each year of her life.

...But that seemed too long.

So then I decided to use each letter of her name to share amazing facts about who she is.

...And then I realized that was even longer.

So instead, I decided to say one specific thing. IN SONG FORM. Can someone grab my guitar over there?

I'm just kidding. I don't have the talent like my dad to pull that off. 

Here is what I want to say. Rewinding 18 years, Jeanna and I did a parenting class, and one of the key verses we learned was Proverbs 22:6:

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Even though, at times, Kathryn-Anne would occasionally stray from the pathway to explore around Mordor, this verse has remained true. And because of this, I understand that, like in 2 Corinthians 3, you are a letter from Christ, affirming God's faithfulness in your life and in ours. God is faithful. 

But lastly, I am reminded of a lesson taught in our parenting class all those years ago. Our teacher and dear friend told us that the responsibility and the role of a parent evolves over time. If you do it right, the faithful work you do in training up your child results in that child becoming your lifelong friend. 

And this reminds me of the Passover meal that Jesus had with his apostles, what we sometimes call The Last Supper. In John 15, Jesus is comforting his apostles who are afraid at what is to come. And he says, in effect, "Fear not, you are my friends. I no longer call you servants, because servants don't know who I am. But you know me, and so we are friends for the rest of our lives." 

So on the one hand, it feels like I'm losing my child, as you enter a bigger world. But on the other? You will always be my child, and now you are my friend as well. 

And remember, when you face the enemies out there, and they tell you that when they loose their arrows, they will blot out the sun... what do we say in response?

Then we will fight in the shade.