Pomp and Circumstance

Last week, I walked out of Dr. Alan Frazier's Comerical Banking class. In a short few moments I realized that I had just finished my last undergraduate class EVER!!! My first class at Harding was Dr. Ireland's New Testament Survey in the fall of 2004. I met my wife in that class. The last few years have been a wild ride.

We certainly didn't choose the easiest path. Marriage at a young age, having a baby a year later, a second by 23. Not the way I ever thought it would be, but better than I could have planned. The fact that in a few days we will be college graduates is a big source of pride.

Of course, we couldn't have done it without a lot of encouragement and support from our families. I personally am thankful for my family making personal and professional sacrifices to send me to Harding from Kindergarden through college (and Master's degree hopefully). It is a unique and rare blessing. I hope I am as good a parent.

The past week hasn't been without it's tough moments. Last Friday an email went out regarding a friend of mine, Micah (Rine) Pate. She was reported missing by her husband after she didn't come home from a jog the previous night. Micah was a few years older than me but at a school as small as Harding Academy, it's hard not to know someone. Her dad was a teacher and coach there as well. I had just seen Coach Rine and his wife earlier in the week and it was hard to imagine their fear and pain. The situation went from bad to worse Friday night when her husband, Thomas, confessed to accedentally shooting her in the back of the head. He lead police to the body, was charged with 2nd degree murder and plead not guilty. He is out on bond at the moment and is with his parents in Atlanta.

This situation has really hit the Harding family hard. The funeral was held at the Academy and over 2000 people showed up. I hope that the coming weeks provide answers and closure, the Rines are good people and I hurt for them.

Main thing I keep thinking is this. We never know what the future holds. Be it life or death, as in the Rine's case. Or our post college plans, as in my graduation this week. It's simply a series of decisions we must make. If we make the right choices, we get the desired results. God is the only one who knows for sure...seems like a good idea to ask his opinion every now and then