Jim Paterson

It’s been quite awhile since I felt compelled to take some time and  write about recent events in my life.  It’s not that I’ve stopped being opinionated or conversational.  That might happen when Global Cooling causes the temperature in Hell to drop to 32 degrees.

There are many firsts in our lives;  your first crush or first car or first real job.  The birth of your first child ranks right up there.  With that in mind, we watched Stephanie walk across the stage to receive her diploma and graduate cum laude.  There was a sense of relief and pride and joy all rolled into one on that Saturday afternoon.  Interestingly, there was a lot more emotion the day I said good-bye to her when I dropped her off at Point Loma in August of 2008 as a transfer student.

She’s has been and is a hard worker.  Her professors were impressed with her work and her GPA confirmed that.  Accounting isn’t the easiest of majors and I think she’ll do well no matter what company or field she goes into.  One of our goals was for both our kids to graduate with a 4 year degree and no debt.  That goal has been achieved for Stephanie and likely for Kelsey in 2 more years.

No doubt there will be many other firsts in our lives.  First daughter to get married or first grandchild.  I keep mementos of good memories in my office.  I haven’t come up with an appropriate memento yet but I’m looking forward to finding it and then placing it somewhere that I can look at it occasionally.

Much of life is uncertain.  This month of May could be the poster child of uncertainty…cool, rainy weather, stock market EKG’s, the job market, interest rates, and political changes.  Amidst the uncertainty and inevitable change,  it’s good to share the times of our life when we can mark them with relief or celebration.

Many of you are more than simply clients; you’ve become friends that care about.  I look forward to hearing from you about the joys of your life.