another scientist in the family

This weekend my sweet little baby sister graduated from college.

I'm so fucking proud of her. It's a long hard road and all the various things that accompany graduation are quite stressful, including the huge milestone of becoming an "adult," and the pending previously elusive phenomenon known as "free time." Not to mention the added pressure of getting a job, collecting a paycheck, and paying off student loans. Rather than elating, it's mostly exhausting.

I remember my graduation, and how tumultuous it was. It's not simply a joyful, "Hey everybody, I graduated!" but more of a frantic culmination of exams and projects and a whirlwind of emotions and booze and coffee. I forgot all of that, since I've been comfortably settled into my post-graduation life for some time now. It's funny how life changes and you're so overwhelmed but then everything settles down and you look back and the big things at that time aren't so big anymore. They're just part of the process.

I see Suzy going through some of the same things I went through, and while I had plenty of advice, had to live through it to really understand any of it.

The biggest thing I learned after graduating was that my decisions were not as important as I thought they were. I thought that if I made the wrong decision, it would affect my life forever. I was poised at a turning point in my life and the decisions I made regarding career paths and living situations and relationships would pave the way for the rest of my life.

Not so much. Aside from birthing a child, no decision has that much weight. Pretty much with everything, I learned to go with my gut and roll with the punches and take it one thing at a time. I can always change my mind, and situations will most definitely change and you know what? When things change, I change with them. I adapt. Yes, a decision I made 5 years ago affects me, but not in the huge way that I thought it would. Even if it was the "wrong" decision. Hindsight, man. I stressed out so hard over so many things that I didn't need to. I'll look back in 5 years and think the same thing about the things I stress about about now.

P.S. Jumping into the San Marcos river is apparently a tradition after graduation. I haven't figured out all of the settings on my new phone, so I got a few blurry snapshots. And then we partied into the wee hours of the morning, which included snap chats, bottles of wine in purses, potential fights, and involving strangers in several Biz Markie sing-alongs. Gotta love family time, man.

I can't believe what a strong, beautiful person she has become. I'm very excited to see where her life takes her.