Walking With Cake

"As in earlier days were our mechanics, such today are our engineers, who may be required not only to tear down a fortress, and then to build it up again, but also to produce all sorts of engines based on mechanical principles, and with equal ease to defend or to annihilate a fortress." - Jakob Leupold

I found myself struggling to sleep at 3:00 this morning. I can't believe I'm having exam anxiety again though I've been out of university for thirty-four years. It is exam week for Jacob and he has been fraught with anxiety over the mechanics exam he was writing this morning. He wrote his calculus exam last Monday and felt he had done well. Yesterday morning he wrote computer programming after which he sent me a text message that read "Cake walk". But mechanics is another story. He was so worried about it. That, of course, meant I was also really worried - thus my inability to sleep. I had to be up very early this morning, in any event, as the painters were scheduled to arrive at 7:30 and I really don't want to greet them in my pajamas. I got up, dressed, made a pot of strong coffee, greeted the painters and prayed for Jacob's success. I summoned my best mother energy to send him, called on the spirit of my dad and all the loved ones my dad keeps company with and waited. Jacob's exam was at 8:30. Allowing for the two hour time frame, I expected to hear from him around 10:45. At 10:08, my blackberry dinged. I took a deep breath and read the message, "Finished in an hour. Once again, walking with cake".

I can't even begin to express my relief and my delight. I called Jacob immediately. We were both giddy. He plans to take a day off from studying and just have some fun today. I'm was happy to hear that. Monday night he will write his chemistry exam. Tuesday morning he will write his exam in engineering design. Tuesday afternoon he will be home. I can hardly wait.

And though I'm housebound with painters for the next four weekdays, I'm still having some fun. I shared an enjoyable holiday dinner last night with my friends Jen and Mike who were colleagues at Alliance Atlantis. Tonight Merv and I will be at the Royal Alex to see Stuff Happens. Tomorrow night we will have dinner with our neighbours. Life is good.