I’ve been home almost a week now, and I still haven’t written about graduation. But that’s because it’s difficult to write about a place and people that you love, and yet won’t be seeing for awhile. That’s kind of what this blog started out as: a way to reminisce about Paris, a place I love and enjoy so much. But even though I spent a lot of time in Paris and grew to love it even more than before, Rice is different in that I’ve cultivated so many friendships there, I’ve learned so much about the world and myself, and even though Houston isn’t my favorite place, it can be because of the people there.
Graduation took place this past Saturday, on May 11th. For months, my roommates, friends, and I had been talking about the weather, hoping that it wouldn’t be rainy or humid or hot. If anyone knows Houston, the weather can be four different things before 5 PM. And, since Rice holds their graduation outside, there are bound to be times when things just don’t work out. A few days before, the weather said it would be raining the whole morning of graduation, and then stop right after at noon. I thought to myself, “Really? Really?!” I didn’t want my family to be separated (each graduate gets two “Inclement Weather” tickets if the graduation has to be held inside, because there’s not enough space for everyone’s family and friends to fit in Tudor Fieldhouse, which is why it’s held outside on the quad) on a day that was meant to be spent together with one’s closest family and friends.
So I prayed that it wouldn’t rain. My parents prayed…everyone I knew was praying that the rain would hold off until after the ceremony! And what happened? On Saturday, not only did it not rain during the ceremony, but I didn’t see a drop of rain all day long. It made my graduation day such a blessing, and allowed me to focus on my last day at Rice.
It was a whirlwind of beautiful, hot weather, family, friends, smiles, and tears, and one that I wouldn’t change for anything. Congratulations to Rice’s 100th graduating class, the amazing Class of 2013!