Resilient & Happy - That's Cal

When Doug, Cal and I found out that IU's spring commencement had been postponed, we were all  a little disappointed.  Cal had worked hard to finish his accounting degree in four years and we were looking forward to watching him celebrate with his friends.  We instead made plans to celebrate at some point during the summer before he left for Chicago to work as an auditor for Plante Moran.  Shortly afterward, Cal received an email to let him know that the start date for his new job would be moved from August to January because of the pandemic.  We decided at that point that we would hold off hosting a grad party until the fall when we could gather with friends and family in Bloomington at an IU tailgate.  We still had his cap and gown and knew that the fall would be a wonderful time to take pictures as well.  

The seasons changed and football started without fans or even tailgating, thus, once again changing our plans.  We postponed the big celebration idea for the spring, took graduation pictures on campus, and enjoyed lunch at Oliver Winery with Cal and HM afterward.  Cal felt a little strange about being in a cap and gown in October, but I noticed that we were not the only ones taking advantage of the beautiful fall day to snap a few graduation pictures.  As Cal stated, it was a little "anti-climactic" but nice to be back in Bloomington just the same.  I appreciated that he realized that the pictures were incredibly important to me and made it a priority.

Shortly after our rare family trip, Cal found out that his start date at Plante Moran would remain the same but that he would begin his career as an auditor working remotely.  We actually weren't that surprised by the news.  We were just happy that Cal still had a position since he knew several grads that had been furloughed instead.  Doug was also pleased to hear that he wouldn't have to move Cal to Chicago in the dead of winter.  

Through all of the changes, Cal has remained the happy-go-lucky guy that we know and love.  He has always been resilient and that has shown a lot in the last six months. Cal filled his summer hours by being a bagboy at Tippy, taking a payroll class, playing golf with his friends and hanging out with Hannah-Marie.  This fall he has been diligently studying for the CPA, passing the first section already, and working temporarily in accounts payable for a company in South Bend.  He's made an apartment out of our basement and has just kept moving forward.  We couldn't be more proud of how he has handled graduating in a world of uncertainty.