Whew! I did it. Last night I spoke in front of what I counted to be 415 people. I sat on stage facing them for almost two hours, so naturally I counted them. I have never spoken to that many people at one time before. I was pretty nervous most of the afternoon, and regretfully snapped at Gabe for no good reason just before leaving the house for the ceremony. It was really fun to see all the kids so dressed up and on their best behavior. As the various awards were presented, I kept thinking of Gabe as the students walked across the stage past us. Very often, when Gabe and I are in public, he enjoys embarrassing me by walking without moving his arms. It's actually pretty funny to watch. This is exactly how 90% of the kids walked across the stage to accept their awards. Once on stage my nerves calmed, which seems weird, and returned only briefly when it was my turn at the mic next. It was a really nice ceremony. The former lieutenant governor gave the opening speech, the school band played, the choir sang, and my kids loved receiving their plaques. A couple of them mentioned that the plaque was the best surprise of the night (as opposed to the acknowledgment or the honor). So, all in all, a great evening.
I have some more to write about retirement (not mine, yet), our country in all its power, and probably a few other things that will pop into my mind, but we're about to eat dinner, so I'm signing off for now.
***Gabe laughed at me when I got home last night because of the ridiculousness of my snap at him. He then enjoyed bringing it up a few more times as the night wore on. I deserved it. It was pretty funny.