About 8 or 9 years ago, I bought a pair of red patent leather ballet flats.  I have always loved red.  When they arrived, I opened them and tried them on, then I put them on the shelf in my closet.  I was not going to wear them until my graduation from UGA.  Every year, when I was inevitably cleaning out my closet, I would happen upon those shoes. I would open the box and hold one in my hand, imagining the day I would actually wear them, then I would pack them back up and put them back on the shelf….

I graduated from the University of Georgia on December 13, 2024, at the age of 54.  It was surreal. I had been working on this degree for 35 years, and I was finally, finally finished!  The Fall Graduation at UGA consists of about 3500 graduates, and takes place in Stegeman Coliseum. Graduates are given 4 tickets, with the opportunity to apply for 2 more.  I was quite distressed! This was going to cut out a huge portion of my fan club.  I broke the news as gently as possible. Mothah immediately said, “That is just fine, Jennifah! I don’t need to see it!” This was not the reaction I was expecting… In all seriousness, I completely understood. At age 54, attending graduations, recitals, anything that involves crowds is not exactly appealing!

Mothah and Daddy have been divorced for, literally, 40 years. Fortunately, that has not stopped either of them from attending life’s important functions for me or my brother.  At age 54, I know that I am quite lucky to still have both of them around.  I got the extra tickets, and was so excited to tell them that they could attend the ceremony! They both responded with the appropriate amount of enthusiasm! 😉

I steamed my gown and stole. I bought a new dress. I got the red shoes off the shelf in my closet.  I could not believe the day was here. Mothah and I drove to Athens by ourselves so that I could check in on time.  J.C. brought Mini Me, The Middle Child, and The Baby. Daddy met us there.  Traffic was a nightmare.  Mothah dropped me off and went to find a parking spot.  I had decided to wear contacts instead of my glasses.  This meant that I could see far away, but I could not see close up…LOL 🙂  The Middle Child had helped me decorate the top of my mortar board with a Taylor Swift Eras themed topper. It had pics of me in different Eras of my life.

I found my seat.  Two girls who were about 6 feet tall in stilettos, covered in bling, sat on my right, and there were two guys sitting next to me on my left.  The guys started talking to me, and I told them my story-I mean, it’s kind of obvious that I am not 22! 😉  They told me that they were honored to sit beside me! Unfortunately, because I was wearing my contacts,  their faces were blurry and I could not tell you what either of them looked like! 😉

Fall graduation does not have a processional, which was fine by me! That was way too big of a crowd for me to feel comfortable walking across a stage.  We had a great speaker-U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of Georgia, Lisa Godbey Wood, also a UGA graduate. The whole time, I was sitting in my seat, feeling proud of myself, but also thinking, “what if I haven’t completed all of my classes? What if they contact me next week and tell me I need to take this or that? What if they made a mistake and I really am not supposed to be here?”

When it was over, I found my very excited and proud family outside and we made a ton of pics.  Mothah was having a luncheon for me at DePalma’s – a restaurant that has been in Athens for over 35 years, and one that my brother and I always loved to eat at!   Mothah and I set out for her car.  I think she had to park a mile and a half away.  By the time we got there, let me just say:  Damn those red shoes!!! I was ready to throw them in the nearest garbage can.  My feet hurt SO badly! They had absolutely zero support whatsoever. I had blisters on both heels. I could barely walk.

The cake I bought was beautiful, but it sucked, and that was very disappointing because cake is my favorite part of any celebratory meal, but all in all, it was a truly great day. It meant so much to me to be able to have my husband, children and Mothah and Daddy at graduation, and I was so grateful to have most of the rest of my fan club at my luncheon!My diploma did not arrive until the beginning of March!  I was really worrying that I had not actually graduated!  In fact, it was so late that I emailed the registrar and they just assumed it got lost in the mail, so they ordered me another one. About three days later, one of them arrived. The next day, the other one arrived. 😉  I have been joking that it took me so long, I might frame both of them and hang one upstairs and one downstairs…

Oh and one more thing.  When we got home from graduation, I promptly gave those red shoes to The Middle Child because there is not a chance in hell that I will wear them again.