Friday, May 2, 2014

Graduation time!


I still remember when my first nephew, Idris Mikel, was a very frustrated baby trying to use the bars of his crib to stand on his own two feet, way before his legs were ready to support him. Now, at 22, Idris is an admirable young man, the pride and joy of his family. That's one reason I didn't think twice when it came time to make plans to attend his college graduation. Though it was a quick trip, it was a very special time and I'm so glad that we all got to spend time together and to celebrate Idris' accomplishments (he graduated cum laude!).







Idris posed for all the traditional pictures--with my mom, with me, with his parents (my sister-in-law and my younger brother), with his girlfriend, with his luminous siblings. It was a very happy time for everyone.


My mom and I stayed at the Mayor's Mansion Inn in Chattanooga, a nineteenth-century house that has been converted to an excellent inn and which was very close to where my nephew lived. We also had the chance to eat at Conga Latin Food, which was superb! I really liked Chattanooga and hope to return in the future to see more of the city and its surroundings.


The return home was rather accidented since the Budget rental Fiat 500 I picked up in Atlanta ended up with a flat tire and had to be exchanged for a horrid Caravan in Chattanooga and we almost missed our flights and I was told I wouldn't be charged $8.49 a gallon for returning the Caravan without a full tank but I was charged that preposterous amount and it was all very stressful -- but all is well that ends well and, thankfully, we all made it home in one piece. Still, that was just one bad thing (I'm never renting a car from Budget again) in a weekend filled with lots of joy and celebration!

No comments: