Mike returned home from the Summer Seminar at the Naval Academy last night at 11:30 PM. He was pumped up and tired, full of wonderful stories and hungry. Seems all the activity jacked up his metabolism and he has been hungry all day. He had a bigger breakfast today than is his custom and was ready to eat again within a short time.

I had been concerned about his going to Mass while there. I needn’t have been, because they provided time for Mass on Sunday.

I need not have worried about the jump.   I think they tell the “Seminarees” (that is a made-up word) that they have to jump the 3-story tower to psyche them up for the rigors they will be put through. In actual fact, insurance regulations seem to limit them to the 15-foot jump into the water. The 3-story jump is reserved for actual midshipmen. Mike said his biggest concern was not having the breath for the depth, but it wasn’t so bad.

I am grateful he had this opportunity to be tested to the limit of his physical capability. That was a huge step out of the comfort of his homeschool. In his homeschool he endures the rigors of a classical education, and we joke that every grade he gets is earned–whether high or low. What we can’t give him at home is the kind of testing he got last week and will get again, starting tomorrow at the Air Force Academy. I don’t make him do sit-ups—-they will.

Back to the empty nest tomorrow morning. His time home will only total about 36 hours. The grace this time is knowing that he still has a year before he really leaves my protective wing. This gave him a taste of being away and gave me a taste of what it will be like for him to be gone.

Dear Lord, help me to cherish every moment.