Another Milestone for Isaac

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This past Thursday afternoon, we gathered in Isaac's kindergarten classroom with the other parents and kids for a little graduation ceremony. It was a fun hour or so of songs, stories and ceremonies (with snacks and fellowship to follow). But more than that, it gave me pause to reflect on all that's happened in the past year and what Isaac and Bonnie and I have experienced together. Perhaps Bonnie will write more later, but I wanted to take some time tonight to remember a few of the highlights.

One of the most enjoyable things was for Isaac and me to ride our bikes together to school in the morning (weather permitting of course). It was fun to spend a few minutes together pretending to be any number of rockets, speeders, lego racers etc. as we made our way along Alfred Avenue and up Queen Street to the school. We progressed from his smaller-sized bike at the beginning of the year, to a more full-sized child bike at the end. I enjoyed watching the joy Isaac exuded as he pedaled along the roads. There were only a few scary times on the bike, usually when Isaac would forget to look both ways when we crossed a main road. But thankfully both he and his father survived all the scares. It was also a lot of fun to every once and a while to catch the smiling faces of people in cars and trucks as they watched the two of us ride alongside them. For whatever reason, these times were characterized by a strong sense of pride and joy on my part.

I found myself as the year went along spending less and less time "hovering" once we got to the school. We usually got there about 10 minutes or so before the bell rang for kids to come inside. I wanted to get there early for his sake, so Isaac would have some social, fun time with other kids (apart from his kindergarten classmates). At the beginning of the year I was a bit more protective, but I slowly felt it was appropriate to let him develop on his own, and let his own personality guide him as he interacted with older kids. As the year went on, I also gradually let him to do more of the "getting ready inside the classroom" on his own as well; things like hanging up his coat, changing shoes, emptying his backpack etc. which I figured he was old enough to do anyways.

I took advantage as often as I was able of Isaac's school days to spend some focused time on developing my business. The 6 1/2 hours on Tuesday's and Thursday's were a previously unopened window of opportunity to spend on the necessary things needed to grow my photographic endeavors here in Smithers.

When Isaac got home, it was usually off to his Lego room to play.As the year progressed and we slowly accumulated a new set here and there, Isaac's skills in developing new and amazing creations really progressed. I can't tell you how many times, quite literally my jaw would drop at what he'd come up with. His imagination is astounding. I tried my best to photograph each new creation he came up with. Someday I'm going to make a book of these images.

All the hard work Isaac's teacher put into developing the classes' reading skills has really paid off. From the beginning of the year, to today when Isaac is reading books on his own (either out loud to himself or to Bonnie or me), it's quite a miracle to witness this transformation. Just the other night as Isaac finished reading a Bible story to me, he told me that he wanted to read the Bible stories in the mornings when "mommy is asleep" so that he can keep quiet for her.

That's about it for now, as I'm sure I'll have more to say down the road. But I'll leave you with a few photos from Isaac's Graduation Day to put a neat bookmark at the end of this chapter in his life.


Isaac standing up during the "Hallelu-Hallelu-Hallelu-Hallelujah-Praise-Ye-The Lord" song.


This time Isaac was one of the loudest boys singing the songs. I remember from the Christmas program they did last year that Isaac didn't sing very much or loud for that matter. What a difference a few months make.


Isaac receiving his certificate with the Elementary Principal, Mr. Klaas Kort.


Isaac and a few of his classmates inspecting their expensive pieces of paper!


Isaac and his teacher, Mrs. E.


Isaac with Farmor and Papa and me looking at a scrapbook that Isaac's teacher made for him of some of the memories from this past year (she made one such book for each of Isaac's classmates). I realized what a treasure this is, and will be for all of Isaac's life. I can think 30 years into the future when Isaac hopefully is a daddy himself, showing this to his kids.