When it's all said and done history begins at home...

Well just some final muse before I head for Virginia and vacation at Kings Dominion. I have spent the last 6 years working in local history. Be it research or lectures or just small meetings this has become a staple in my life, I cannot imagine life without it. My daughter Shannon has just completed her youth history. I can remember her birth in 1984 and the stress of being a preemie. Her mother waking me at 3AM just having to see her while she rested in the hospital. She was a mild baby, calm and laid back, at six months we had her in Little Italy having dinner practically under Gotti's house, she was so happy. As a toddler she smiled a lot and I loved seeing her spend time with Clara and then Rachael. She always seemed a little wise for her years which gave me a lot of respect for her even as a preteen. She ALWAYS loved music something we share to this day. Looking back I realize she just held her troubles and dealt with them in her own way, I do wish I could have been more helpful with that. As a high school student she soldier through and even in tough situations she held her self together better than many adults twice her age can do. But when I think of Shannon I think music. Instruments, vocals, plays she shined in all of that and took it right with her to college. Her Freshman year was a nightmare having to live alone in a house with no housing available at Monmouth University. She soldiered through again. 5 years of college life with not much love for the students at the school and few friends she graduated, with honors, with a degree in Special Education and Music. Presenting a recital I will never forget for the rest of my life. Yesterday the road came full circle as she received the call she was being hired in East Brunswick as a special ed teacher. You see Shannon is modest and sometimes unsure, but she needs not be. She carried herself with poise and style. She is mature, caring and honest. When she walks into a room she can light it up without effort. She told me she was nervous with so much to do and learn. There is no need for her to be nervous, she is confident and poised, I just need her to see it in herself. Shannon has become everything you can ask in your child, but so much more. She has it all, she just needs to allow herself to see it. Am I bragging? No I tell it like it is. She completed this part of her life I only helped along the way. She will exceed her own expectations and I'll be watching and crying and proud as she does. This child is special and I want the world to know it, we were blessed to have someone like her as a daughter. GO GET EM GURL!