My Compass

My oldest child (and only daughter) will be graduating from high school in less than two weeks. I know it sounds trite, but I'm not exactly sure where the years went.

Last month we attended the orientation program for the college she'll be attending in the fall. As we were put through the paces of the busy weekend, I couldn't help but remember my own college orientation and the ensuing experience.

From start to finish, college was a time of learning and personal growth. An unforgettable chapter of my life where I was pushed to learn more, be more, do more than I ever imagined. I made lifelong friends (the kind that are more like family than friends), and I have journals and photo albums overflowing with stories from "the good old days."

The most treasured memories, however, aren't the ones that you have to read in a diary -- they are the ones that stay with you every day. They are the memories that define you. The life lessons that make you who you are. I am blessed to have such memories as a result of being a part of a sorority.

Over the years, there were many "rah-rah" good times with an amazing group of women -- but those are not the memories that shaped me. My everyday blessing comes from the beautiful words that are:

 

The Symphony of Alpha Chi Omega

To see beauty
even in the common things of life,
to shed the light of love and friendship
round me;
to keep my life in tune with the world
that I shall make no
discords
in the harmony of life;
to strike on the lyre of the universe
only the notes of happiness,
of joy, of peace;
to appreciate every
little service rendered;
to see and appreciate all that is noble in another,
be her badge what it may;
and to let my lyre send forth the chords
of love, unselfishness, sincerity.

This is to be my symphony.
~Celia McClure

It's been 20+ years since college, and in many ways the idea of sorority life is completely incomprehensible to me now, yet these words still linger in my mind. Beautiful words to live by. Beautiful words that inspire me. An internal compass that always points me in the right direction.

I have no idea what every day blessings will come from the next chapter of my daughter's life. I can only hope that the chapter is defined by limitless opportunity, challenges to grow both personally and intellectually, abundant happiness -- and her own internal compass that will always steer her home.

I love you Amy! Every day you give me a million reasons to be incredibly proud.