The Ridge

We were back on "The Ridge", better known as McCallie, for a very special event, Honor Scholars Weekend. I have attended two with my sons and two as a parent representative. The first as a volunteer was a cake walk. This one was not since I was asked to talk at the welcoming dinner and the first Joe Restaino '08 Scholarship was being awarded. My heart was in my throat, my hands were covered in clammy sweat and I won't even go to the place of where my stomach was, trust me that is better left unsaid.

Anyone who knows me well is aware that speaking to an audience is very difficult, simply put it is not my cup of tea. Give me a group of two or three I am golden, anything over five I am a wreck. But to be given the opportunity tell a group of potential McCallie men, as well as those who have spent years educating them, what McCallie has meant to our family was more important than my fear of public speaking.

My start was shaky. I looked into the audience and the only faces I saw were those who made everything possible. Those who worked hard to graduate Joe, those who allowed Tony and David to be home with their brother during his last months, those who embraced us with love when that was all we had to cling to, those who have quietly supported us this past year. My voice caught in the vacuum of my throat, my mouth opened but nothing came out, tears welled in my eyes. I took a breath, looked down at my words and somewhere in the space between panic and resolve I delivered my talk.