Proud Parents

JJ, Edwin, Me and baby, GK

Tonight we celebrated the graduation of our two Seminary students JJ Tang and Edwin Herrera.

I didn't have many expectations of the evening actually. Most meetings of the church are without the ceremony and ritual of many other religions. And this meeting was certainly without the pomp and circumstance of most graduations. But there was something moving about the tribute it paid to a bunch of teenagers who woke up really early. Some of them every day for four years.

The meeting was scheduled at 5pm, so when GK and I walked in at 4:57 and saw only the CES director and one other couple with two small children we were sure we had gotten the time wrong. No, we got it right. And when there were a few more people there, they started the commencement... at around 5:25.

I won't belabor this post more than necessary by detailing the minutes of the meeting, but between the leaders' remarks and the presentation of the diplomas both Edwin and JJ had been asked to share their testimonies. I felt like a proud mother. I listened as they both talked about how much they had learned about the scriptures this year, and how much they appreciated GK and me for teaching them. They talked about how it had prepared them to serve missions and understand more fully the role of Christ in their lives.

I wouldn't have traded this year of Seminary for the world as I listened to these two boys talk about their experience. For every morning that I threw up on the street on the way to or from Seminary, and for every morning that GK made me stay in bed; for every morning that we walked down the hill to the train with the icy wind blowing right through our layers and for every morning we came home soaked from unexpected rain, I knew that we had been blessed by knowing two such dedicated, humble, sincere 18 year olds.