another ending and a celebration

Up early. At sunrise. Captured in the bedroom window.





Breakfast. Rather rushed.
 

 


Ed is off and away for his Friday tech meeting. And I eagerly, eagerly pick up the next stack of exam essays to grade. This is the last batch and it comes from a class where I know many of the students from previous classes. I'm truly eager to see how they did. (I wont know until I submit all grades: grading is completely anonymous.)

No interruptions today. I want to get to the end.

And I do.

And now I enter the final grade ever (it's an A+, richly deserved) and after I do this, I burst into tears.

Retiring is a funny thing: I look forward to it (I wouldn't do it if that weren't the case) and I look back as well and of course, what stands out is the best of the best (it's always that way, no?) -- the most special classes, the kindest, most earnest students -- their faces are before me now. Sigh...

In reality, I'm not yet completely free from work obligations. There'll be meetings with dissatisfied students. There'll be the dreadful task of emptying my office at school -- 25 years of folders and marked up texts. Uff! Chuck it all! Light a match to it!

Maybe not.

In the meantime, in the late afternoon, I bounce back to a less emotional state. It is a beautiful day -- with loads of sunshine and warm temperatures (right around freezing). No question: what we need is a good hour out on skis.  A heavenly hour, of quiet, of blue shadows and lightly golden skies.
















And then we're home and Ed takes a quick nap and I get ready and now out we go, for a majestic retirement celebration at L'Etoile...






... on the terrifically sweet invitation of my Law School friend and her husband. Here they are, to my left...






...and joining us are my daughter and her husband, to my right...






...and I'll spare you the photo of Ed or myself because you see too much of both of us here on quite the regular basis! Even though, shockingly, he did comb his hair for the occasion -- you might not have recognized him!


I haven't eaten at this very special restaurant since I did my moonlighting here (that ended just about the time Ed and I began spending time together -- in other words, eight years ago). It is a superb place of great food -- such great food that awards are cluttering their hallways. I'll leave you with a photo of my dessert -- a meringue, champagne citrus sauces, pomegranate, ice concoction -- all refreshing and deliciously prepared.






The moon is weeks away from being full and there is a light cloud cover tonight. And still, on the drive home tonight, I say to Ed -- it is such a bright, bright night! ...isn't it?