I’m taking note of one aspect of many of these virtual events: they require you to place orders and pick up the beer in question a day or two ahead of the event’s date. So read on ahead for these virtual happy hours, and make a note of the deadlines.

And it seems odd to point this out, but May 11 is still the start of American Craft Beer Week. In Chicago this had usually been passed over in favor of Chicago Craft Beer Week. but that’s not happening this year.

Monday, May 11

Tuesday, May 12

Wednesday, May 13

Thursday, May 14

Nothing in my life has ever made me feel more like both an adult and a child at the same time than my mother’s death. I’ve struggled to recognize – and perhaps process — the multi-layered emotions I’ve experienced in the months since she died, and it just occurred to me as I stared at this blank screen that the collision of these two phases of life might be why.

Losing a parent makes you feel like an adult. Getting married, buying a house, having a kid, getting divorced – all of those are adult things. But I’ve never felt more adultish than when my mom died. All my life she cared for me. And then, right near the end, I cared for her.

And in caring for her I did things that I never thought I could do. Or at least I wondered whether I could do them. But I did them. Some of those things were difficult, but it didn’t matter. My two sisters and I did them.

We did them because she spent our entire lives showing us how much she loved us. Every single day. Without fail. And although I tried to be a good son, I can’t help but wonder whether I came up a bit short in showing her how much I loved her. How much I appreciated her. But if I came up short, at least I know that those things we did near the end showed her how much we loved her.

Caring for a sick parent is the natural order of things, I guess. Children are supposed to live longer than their parents. It’s an incomprehensible level of sadness when that doesn’t happen. But just because it’s natural, doesn’t mean it’s easy.

In the relationship between me and my mom, she was always the parent, and I was always the child. I guess for some people – those poor, unlucky people who weren’t blessed with great parents – that’s not always the case. But for me it was. I was the child. She was the mother. She loved me. She cared for me. She supported me. She looked out for me. No matter what happened in my life – poor decisions, embarrassing revelations, shameful actions – I never had to doubt whether my mom was on my side. Her love was constant.

And because I knew that her love was constant, I knew that I had something on which I could always rely. In success, sadness, heartbreak, achievement, frustration, and everything else, she served as an anchor. A safe harbor to which I could always retreat. I could live my life and sometimes make mistakes, sometimes get things right, and no matter how it turned out she’d be there.

Until she wasn’t.

Or, rather, until she couldn’t.

It’s been 211 days since she could be there. And on most of those days, at least once, I’ve thought about turning to her, and then realize that I can’t. She’s gone and I’m still the child, looking for her to anchor me. Looking for the safe harbor. Longing to know that she still has my back.

The absence is overwhelming sometimes.

But then the natural order of things takes over. The child has become the adult. And because that child had a mother who loved him, and nurtured him, and taught him, and guided him, and supported him, he’s okay. He has made it through.

He has made it through because the success of any good parent is preparing the child to excel without them. By always being there when I needed her, she prepared me for life after her. She taught me the important stuff. She made sure that I’d be okay after she was gone, even though I’ve often wondered whether I would be.

I won’t hear my mom’s voice this Mother’s Day. I’ll miss her, like I always do. But I’ll also smile because she was my mother. And if ever a person deserved her own day, she did. I could not have asked for a better mother – or a better grandmother to her grandchildren, by the way – than my mom.

So I’ll find a way to celebrate this Mother’s Day. Maybe I’ll eat a Dove bar, or watch an episode of Coach, or read a few pages of a Diana Gabaldon book – all things that she loved.

Or maybe, if I really want to do something that captures her spirit, I’ll hug my own kids and tell them that I love them.

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For the past three Sunday evenings, over 6.1 million viewers watched The Last Dance, a 10-part documentary series broadcast on ESPN featuring the ‘90s NBA Championship team the Chicago Bulls. The series featured the Michael Jordan era and became the highest rated documentary on the network.

From left, Dennis Rodman, Scottie Pippen, Michael Jordan, Ron Harper and Toni Kukoc were big parts of Bulls teams that won three straight NBA titles from 1996 to 1998. Jordan and Pippen were members of the first “three-peat” team, which won titles from 1991 to 1993. (Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

The Chicago Bulls journey of achieving six NBA championships from 1991 to 1998 culminated to two three-peats with coach Phil Jackson, a historic feat that made the winning team one of NBA’s greatest dynasties.

These accomplishments were made undoubtedly because of their star player Michael Jordan, who played small forward and shooting guard, alongside of Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, and a  talented roster that included  B.J. Armstrong, John Paxson, Steve Kerr, Horace Grant, Toni Kukoc and Ron Harper.

Directed by Jason Hehir, The Last Dance features an on-camera interview of Hall of Famer Michael Jordan and explores his winning spirit and dedication to the game.  Hehir incorporates behind-the-scenes locker footage, basketball highlights and candid interviews of Jordan’s teammates as well as several of his on court adversaries.

Album cover art for ‘I Ain’t No Joke’, performed by ’90s rappers Eric B & Rakim, featured in the soundtrack of ‘The Last Dance’ documentary.

But what The Last Dance also revealed was an open time capsule that reminded us Chicagoans of how proud we were of the ’90s Bulls.

One of the things viewers also enjoyed most was how the documentary used the music of that era as part of their soundtrack.

The film’s producers selected early hip hop, punk rock and new wave music of the ‘90s like Hip Hop Hooray (Naughty by Nature),  I Got It Made (Special Ed) and Sirius (The Alan Parsons Project), in which the latter was used as the Bulls on court introduction at their home games.

Hehir used these songs in the documentary to emphasize how cool and trendy the Chicago Bulls became in their rise in popularity.  These songs also made a powerful statement in the documentary’s music driven montage clips to showcase the Bulls dominance in games against the Detroit Pistons, the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers.

From Left: Vin Rock, Treach, and DJ KayGee of the Grammy Award winning hip hop group Naughty By Nature. Their hit ’90s song, ‘Hip Hop Hooray’ is featured in the soundtrack of ‘The Last Dance’ documentary.

For the millennials, they probably found themselves bopping to music they weren’t familiar with, while enjoying clips of Michael Jordan dropping fade away jumpers and three pointers.  But for the rest of us older folks, these were songs we partied to at the bars, dance clubs and backyard parties after every Michael Jordan-Chicago Bulls win.

Here are a list of songs featured in the soundtrack of the first six episodes of The Last Dance.

Been Around The World (1997)
Performed by Puff Daddy feat. The Notorious B.I.G. and Mase
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDfemK8Tee8

SUR LE BOULEVARD DU RYTHM’FUNKY’ (1993)
Performed by Song E Mc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xhQzy3J6Pc

I Ain’t Joke (1987)
Performed by Eric B. Rakim
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TN-kDEKxF0

Sirius (1982)
Performed by the The Alan Parsons Project
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOymHEdiPts

Theme From the Planets (1976)
Performed by Dexter Wansel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yT3L9jKveoQ

Hip Hop Hooray (1992)
Performed by Naughty By Nature
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rz1Xn1vzOM4&list=RDRz1Xn1vzOM4&start_radio=1

I Got It Made (1989)
Performed by Special Ed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_9GuiE5Fck

I’m Bad (1987)
Performed by LL Cool J
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVDfyc2lh4Q

Can I Kick It (1990)
Performed by A Tribe Called Quest
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3pyCGnZzYA

Partyman (1989)
Performed by Prince
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjY8HvpNu6o

The Maestro (1992)
Performed by Beastie Boys
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFPtQr2h0wk

Rosa Parks (1998)
Performed by OutKast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drsQLEU0N1Y

If I Ruled The World (Imagine That) (1996)
Performed by Nas Feat. Lauryn Hill
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlp-IIG9ApU

The Choice Is Yours (1991)
Performed by Black Sheep
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9F5xcpjDMU

Still Not A Player (1998)
Performed by Big Pun Feat. Joe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xue-dOOLiY

I Feel Free (1967)
Performed by Cream
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVcIer_4OnA

How Ya Like Me Now (1987)
Performed by Kool Moe Dee
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9_nAZ3VEA0

About the Author:  Don Howze is an Emmy Award Winning Film/Tape Editor and Associate Professor of Journalism and Television Production.  Don is the producer and director of the upcoming film documentary The Production Crew, funded in part by The Field Foundation of Illinois.  imdb.me/dondvideo

I am truly amazed as to how easily people are suckered in by really bad science.

Recently, there has been a torrent of garbage on Facebook. Among the worst was a video I shall not name, but which is beautifully debunked HERE.

I highly recommend you watch this.

Another series of garbage was the fact that masks cannot filter out viruses, because they are too small.

That’s correct. That is not why you wear a mask.

You wear a mask so that when you cough, sneeze or just breathe, if you have the virus, it won’t travel as far than without the mask (i.e., 6 feet)

At the exact same time, people are saying how masks are causing you to not get enough oxygen.

This is where I really lose it.

LISTEN YOU MORONS: AN OXYGEN MOLECULE IS THOUSANDS OF TIMES SMALLER THAN A VIRUS. WHY WOULD YOU THINK IT DOESN’T GET THROUGH?

ALSO: ARE YOU WEARING A DAMNED PLASTIC BAG OVER YOUR HEAD? CAN’T YOU READ THE WARNING: THIS IS NOT A TOY OR A GAME?

I must confess, I wish some of these people would put plastic bags over their heads sometimes.

So, how does this happen?

Simply put, most people are woefully ignorant of the most basic scientific concepts. However, that’s not all of it.

Most people, and here I will include even my medical and scientific colleagues, don’t know how to analyze information to see if it makes sense.

Part of the reason for that is it takes time and effort, which most people don’t want to expend.

Another reason is that most people were never really taught how.

This is a failure of the educational system all the way up the chain. In fact, I am certain most professors don’t know how to do it either.

There is also one other thing that leads people to believe bad science, but for this, permit me to digress a moment.

(Actually, it’s my blog, I’ll digress whether you want me to or not.)

Remember the old sci-fi movies where someone asks the evil genius why they are planning to destroy the world?

They would often respond, “Because they laughed at me at the university, said I was mad. I’ll show them!”

Now, to be honest, science and medicine has been guilty of laughing at people who were correct.

Like poor Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis, who simply proposed that doctors wash their hands between patients, since they may be spreading disease.

He died alone in an insane asylum.

Of course, about 20 years later, he was proven correct, and medicine now honors his memory.

A fat lot of good that did him, but at least we admit we royally screwed the pooch on that one.

Most bad doctors and scientists would like to portray themselves in that light (if they even know who he was).

They claim to be the martyrs fighting against the pharma-industrial complex, that is seeking to silence them, so they can churn out their poisonous anti-cancer drugs, when really all that is needed is the extract of apricot pit (laetrile, if you didn’t know).

The conspiracy du jour is, of course, development of a vaccine for Covid-19.

These individuals, with their army of scientifically illiterate individuals, put forth conspiracy theories claiming Covid-19 is a hoax, it’s a government control effort, it’s big pharma making us get another vaccine, etc.

They are wrong. Completely wrong and need to be ignored.

They really need to be silenced, but that’s the price of free speech.

Better yet, let us use them as a means of educating yourself and your children on how these charlatans operate and how they lure the gullible into believing nonsense.

Then you and your family will be better prepared to figure out the next hoax.

I hate what has happened as much as you. I hate not seeing our friends, going out to dinner, seeing our workmates (well, some of them, anyway).

But this disease is real. This disease is NOVEL, so we really are struggling with what to do.

We will inevitably make mistakes, and please stop blaming whoever you don’t like. NO ONE KNOWS WHAT’S RIGHT.

The variation in countries and states reopening is actually a good thing, however, because it will be a natural experiment to see whether we truly need these draconian measures, or if we can loosen them, and how much.

However, we will not know the results for weeks, maybe months.

And whoever turns out to be right, it’s because they made a lucky guess, not because anyone really knew for certain what needed to be done.

And if someone tries to tell you different-STAY SKEPTICAL!

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I’ll bet the next edition of Webster’s Dictionary will have “zoom” as both a verb and a noun.

I have had numerous meetings lately using this app.  One of those sessions included 42 people throughout the U.S. in the East, the Midwest, and the West Coast.  The other meeting wasn’t as full, just 10 of us, living in the same community, who volunteer to serve on the board of a charity.  During both of those meetings, I couldn’t help but smile at the snafus that occur when people try something new.

SNL made fun of a reverend trying to preach to his flock via ZOOM.  The congregants wouldn’t mute their microphones and so you heard all sorts of stuff including a toilet flush in the middle of the minister’s pearls of wisdom.  When the faithful finally did mute their microphones after numerous pleadings to do so,  the minister lost it when he couldn’t hear the choir (whose director failed to reset the microphone from mute to active).   As I recall, we too had our moments in the meetings I noted above.

What I find amazing is that with a computer or a smartphone one can access the meeting from anywhere in the world and in real-time.  On cell phones, sometimes all you get is the audio, but even still, can you imagine being in a virtual meeting with 42 people?  And if you’re using a laptop, I find the quality of the video and the audio to be amazing.  Obviously on newer computer models with dual-core or better processing the video definition is even more definitive.

I always loved reading the work of Jules Verne.  That guy not only wrote fascinating tales but the scope of his imagination, considering he lived in the 19th Century, was/is astonishing.  Actually some of what Verne wrote about had already found life within the mind of Leonardo da Vinci  – who dreamed or maybe saw more than just possible in his genius.  That’s why the concept of having a Dick Tracy watch radio that Apple improved on – adding face time or video as the pros label it seemed revolutionary when first proposed prior to a prototype  – and in either case, we’re talking in the course of history a sliver of time regarding astounding technical innovations.

That’s why I still find ZOOM a marvel to appreciate.  Consider all that had to come forth to even make a ZOOM DREAM possible.  Besides the electronics, infrastructure had to be created to make such a connection a reality.  The broadband capability alone makes those pictures/videos come alive with sharper detail than versus a dial-up connection.  That dial-up stuff still exists in some rural areas of the U.S. due to the fact that making broadband universal has been a cost that does not net a substantial enough of a return on investment  – an ROI that would be a losing venture on a profit and loss sheet.   Hopefully, this will change as more and more homes in rural America turn to streaming services for their information and entertainment.  That might placate potential investors to develop delivery systems with an architecture that provides the very best broadband standard of streaming.

And look at what streaming has allowed us to do?  It brings us to places of worship, educational institutions, orchestras, theater, opera, and almost any event you can imagine from sports to cooking without reliance on TV stations or networks to deem the telecast worthy of dissemination.  That barrier is long gone however major corporations demand as always a return on investment. Their ROI  for the cost of producing a streamed trade show production will be measured SUCCESSFUL or NOT – by the number of hits garnered by social media.  I’ve had the pleasure of directing a few of those LIVE infomercials out in sunny California at the Carmel by the Sea Auto Show.  It really wasn’t that long ago when traditional measurement for a TV production was considered dependent on the HUT – Households Utilizing Televisions…so, yeah forgive me if I’m still awestruck by the marvels of the 21st Century.

If there was anything that came out of our lockdown lives, it might actually be THIS…we are more connected than we have ever been in the history of humanity.  Now if we could just appreciate the chance to GO DO GOOD and civilly agree to disagree.  And if we’re to be fair, we’re talking about ideas that are not tinfoil conspiracies because no one should have to suffer fools gladly.   But maybe that wish for good people from different sides of the aisle coming together might be a bit more prophetic than either Leonardo or Jules would or could have ever imagined?

Nah, the way it used to be wasn’t that long ago and with a bit of luck and appreciation for life post-pandemic, it just might happen.  Now wouldn’t that be a marvel?

Albuquerque. Baltimore. Baton Rouge. Broward. Central NY. Charleston. Cleveland. DC. Dayton. Fresno. Kansas City. Lexington. Little Rock. Milwaukee. Nashville. Omaha. Orange County. Rhode Island. Sacramento. San Francisco. San Jose. South Alabama. Southeastern Pa. Tampa Bay. Twin Cities. Ventura County. Winston-Salem.

What do these United States communities have in common? All of them were scheduled to have Parkinson’s Moving Day walks this spring. All of their walks were cancelled.

Covid-19!

We’re at the beginning of the charity walk season. Each weekend from now through the fall, you’ll find walkers in our local parks, trying to raise money for the causes that are closest to their hearts. Like everything else in America, charities are affected by the pandemic. It’s hard to have a group walk when most of the country has been under a stay at home order. If you think having fifty people in one location is pushing it, how is it possible to gather a couple of thousand folks together? The answer is, it’s not! Social distancing isn’t possible.

But, what we’ve found out in the last two months is there are still ways to connect. We’ve seen children attend school by Zoom. Work, too. Families and friends have their connections by computer. If these groups can do it, why not have a virtual charity walk for thousands?

Today is the Parkinson’s community day to have their walk. At 1 pm eastern time, you can click this link and attend a virtual Parkinson’s event. You can also find it on Facebook and You Tube.

I’ve been to seven Moving Day events and it’s always a special and emotional day. When you pass along the lakefront with a thousand other people, it’s almost a spiritual experience. I don’t know if sitting on a laptop and watching will match that, but it’s opportunity to bond with others from this community. Because of our current circumstances, it may be even more special than a normal walk.

And then there’s the money. Moving Day walks throughout the United States raises millions of dollars which is used to support programs that makes the lives of people suffering with Parkinson’s Disease better. With so many people out of jobs and struggling to make ends meet, you have to figure that charity donations are the last thing on everyone’s mind. Hopefully, virtual walks like this one, and the others you’ll see for various other causes, will remind people that money is still needed. Every little bit does help.

So at one today, turn on your computer, tablet or phone and come take a walk. You won’t even have to leave your home.

Related Post: April was Parkinson’s Disease Awareness Month

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In deference to Tara Reade and #metoo, let’s stipulate that she was forcibly finger banged by Joe Biden in 1993.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) said of Al Franken’s accusers that if a woman says it happened, it happened.

For the record, Gillibrand has since expressed regret over her rush to judgement.

If Ms Reade’s allegation is true, what Joe Biden did to her 27 years ago is inexcusable and criminal.

Compared to Donald Trump’s crime spree during that same 27 years though, Ms. Reade’s allegation is barely a blip on the radar.

Trump racked up multiple bankruptcies at the expense of American workers, companies and taxpayers, dozens of accusations of sexual assault, thousands of law suits and serial philandering.

There was money laundering for Russian oligarchs, fraudulent charities, a fraudulent university; a life of fraud and disdain for the law.

Just this past Wednesday, Trump decided to move forward with his suit to abolish the Affordable Care Act.

At a time when it’s most clear that everyone’s health depends on everyone else’s health, he is trying to take health care away from millions.

There will be no coverage for any kind of preexisting condition, from COVID-19 to cancer.  If he tells you otherwise, he is LYING.

Since the inception of the ACA (Obamacare), Republicans have voted more than 60 times to rip it up, but have yet to come up with a plan to replace it and there is no plan to protect preexisting conditions.

Michael Flynn lied to the FBI about his contact with a Russian operative during an investigation of Russian influence and admitted to it TWICE under oath.

William Barr said that Flynn’s lies “weren’t material” to the investigation, while hypocritically saying that there is only one standard of justice in America.

Donald Trump is dismantling America.  You may think he’s doing a great job because he’s going after the “other side,” but if he takes away their right to speak out, the next president may take away YOUR right to speak.

The statute of limitations for second degree sexual assault in Washington, DC is ten years.  Ms. Reade made no accusations during that time.

In court filings during Ms Reade’s 1996 divorce, her ex-husband said that she had complained about sexual harassment at her workplace, but did not mention Joe Biden or sexual assault.

Ms Reade said nothing in 2008, when Biden first ran for president, then as Barack Obama’s VP.

Nothing in 2012 or the four years after that.

Biden announced his candidacy in April of 2019, then campaigned, appeared in nationally televised debates and Democratic primaries.

Not a peep from Tara Reade.

With the primaries done, the Democratic field down to one and Trump’s Hunter Biden conspiracies unable to gain traction, Tara Reade suddenly stepped forward with Trump mega donor, Douglas Wigdor in her shadow.

Maybe Tara Reade looked in the mirror one morning and was disheartened by what she saw.  Maybe she wanted to bring back her 1993 self.

She said she had filed a harassment complaint, then said she didn’t.  Then she said she didn’t remember what she said.

She said she was fired from Biden’s office, but really quit because, I love Russia with all my heart…President Putin scares the power elite in America because he is a compassionate, caring, visionary leader…[his] obvious reverence for women, children, and animals, and his ability with sports, is intoxicating to American women.

Her words, which is all we have.  About Biden she said,  I wasn’t scared of him, that he was going to take me in a room or anything. It wasn’t that kind of vibe.

No mention of sexual assault.

Trump has clearly demonstrated that he is willing to risk unlimited American lives to bring back an economy that he hopes will win him reelection.  If that doesn’t scare you, it should.

No district attorney in this country would prosecute Joe Biden based upon available evidence.  It’s a case of he said, she said and it requires a leap of faith to believe either one.

The only thing we can know for sure is that we will never know for sure.

Before stepping off a tour bus, Trump told Billy Bush that he could grab women’s pussies without consequence because of his celebrity.  Those are his words.

Now we want to throw Joe Biden under that bus for one unsubstantiated allegation.

Voters are going to have to take a leap of faith come November.

After 27 years, we know Joe Biden.  He may be the only shot we have right now of saving our country from itself.

If you leap the other way, you just may be dragging the rest of us under the bus.

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This graduation isn’t like others. We’re all tucked into our homes, cooking, working out, creating….or not. We might be sitting on the couch, curled up watching Netflix and eating cookies, bored but unable to muster the energy to do much else. Maybe we’re depressed, anxious, afraid.

Those of you with school-aged children are your child’s guide through online school. You’re doing your own school work at the same time, maybe struggling with the same things they are: how can you be engaged, how can you get all of this work done?

Some of you are working from home. Some of you have lost your jobs. Worse still, you may be ill or caring for someone who is. Maybe you’ve lost someone and were separated from them at the end, now waiting for a time when you can gather to honor their lives.

I used to have this fantasy that would crop up perennially when I felt overwhelmed with work. I was in prison—falsely accused of course—maybe for only a year. But I could have all of the books I wanted. I could read and read and read. And every day I’d work out. After a year I’d leave my cell well-read and buff. Relaxed, ready to face the world.

Well, I’ve got my Corona virus prison and I can’t read to save my life. I have four or five books scattered around the house that I’m trying to read. I get through a few paragraphs and have no idea what I’ve just read. My concentration is gone.

When I was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 I faced the same inability to read. It was as if my own story was just too big to allow any others to speak. Sometimes there’s no escape.

As crisis wears on and as you move away from a traumatic reality, you realize that you’re grieving. Grieving for a lost world, for a lost normal, for a lost vitality. And you move and circle back through cycles of denial and anger, sorrow and acceptance.

We are a grieving nation at the moment. I try to remind myself that seasons of grief are normal. They are part of life. Parts of us wither and die with the waning light and bitter winds. But as Tom Waits tell us, “You can never hold back Spring.” New parts of us, old parts recreated perhaps, begin to grow. Not because of the suffering. They are not gifts or silver linings. They are just normal. All things come to an end and new things always begin.

Oprah Winfrey tells of a story she heard from her mentor, Maya Angelou. It ended with the image of boarding a plane in a storm, pouring rain and thunder and lightning. But as the plane takes off, gains altitude, it rises above the storm and there is sun. She reminds us, “The sun is always there.”

Every year I look forward to graduation. I pull out my graduation robe and funny hat, remind myself which side the tassel is supposed to be on, find comfortable shoes and head off to Tinley Park. I get in line with my colleagues and I feel a thrill at the music, the pomp and circumstance, of honoring you, the graduates.

Graduation is the cap of the experience of education. All of the clothes and the music and the words are symbolic to honor you and to honor the intellect and heart of what we do. The colors all mean something.

My hood has purple and white satin on it, symbolizing the institution that granted my degree, Texas Christian University. Go horned frogs. The blue velvet down the front is the color of the discipline of philosophy, representing the Doctor of Philosophy degree, the PhD.

Most of our robes are black, but my friend Genie wears a rich brown robe, which is Brown University’s chosen color. Even the sleeves are symbolic. You can tell the graduate has a Masters degree from the distinctive drape that falls a foot or so below the sleeve.

Some of you wear cords around your neck, symbolizing honor societies and the DDP program.

The graduation ceremony is packed with meaning. I think we all deserve a Corona shaped pin to wear on our lapels for this year, to symbolize this terrible time and our ability to survive it. To help remind us that what we’ve achieved this year matters.

Our education does matter, and I’m proud that you’re graduating. You have learned so much, from math to writing, from counseling to accounting, the breadth of what the institution has to teach. You have also learned about perseverance and hard work, about when to cut corners and when to stay up all night. You’ve learned that learning comes with sacrifice. Most good things do.

So in this time of social isolation, I encourage you to have your own ceremony. Pack it full of meaning and symbolism. Create a wreath or a collage with images and words that represent your time at Governors State. If you have your robe and hat, wear them and take a picture. Be goofy or solemn. Tape messages to the cap. Hug the family you live with and give a speech in which you thank them. Give them and yourself the gift of gratitude for becoming a vetted member of the educated group.

This graduation isn’t like others. So revel in that. Make it special by being kind to yourself, by creating a moment in which you can just be. Know that you are growing, that parts of you are pushing up through the warming ground and are readying yourself to blossom. Mourn for what is lost, accept that loss is inevitable, and find time to celebrate that you are here and ready.

And as Oprah Winfrey reminds us, as the plane takes off and leaves behind the raging storm, rising above it all, “The sun is always there.” Somewhere it is shining.

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