Nathan's Last Day as A Bulldog

Today Nathan was promoted from 5th grade to middle school.  Four classes of fifth graders and their teachers and parents gathered in the Helotes Elementary cafeteria for what felt more like a casual graduation ceremony than a promotion, complete with the marching in music of all formal graduation ceremonies.

The kids were dressed in yellow t-shirts and tied in several of the Bulldog themes in songs and speeches.  The principal cried at one point and I saw tears in the eyes of some of the girls and boys.  The names of the kids were on the backs of their T-shirts as "Storytellers"--which went along with the theme: "This is where our story begins."

Nathan had a row of cheerers--three sets of grandparents, two aunts, three cousins, and Elena from down the hall at kindergarten.

Elena borrowed my camera and took this shot of her mom
and her cousin Audrey.

Nathan and Papi

Thirty years ago, I was in the same cafeteria on the first row with a camera.  Will was the star of the play that year in which all the characters were celestial beings and Will was literally a "star."  Here's Will--thirty years ago.

Both my children began their school years at Helotes Elementary--as have both my Texas grandchildren.