When your friends grow up

We all have friends we know from college, high school and even grade school. We knew them when they were young and foolish. As I grow older, it's kind of weird to see them in their "adult" lives. Friends, with whom I played the game hearts and darts (played continuously for one long finals weekend) are now 1) a PHD in Electrical Engineering who went back to get a law degree and is starting a clerkship for a circuit court judge in Puerto Rico 2) a father and teacher who designed an alternative education program for teenagers in technology and 3) one who was in near the beginning of AOL and now working for Meetup. So it's weird, and yet totally cool, to think of them as contributing and influential people in the world. Here's another example, my friend Nora B. is often brought in as an expert on coalitions in foreign affairs and just got this article about the counterinsurgency in Iraq printed in last week's Baltimore Sun. I could go on about the amazing things other friends are doing, but it's time for me to start thinking about planning for the upcoming school year as summer break is nearly over.