There are those people who when they walk into a room, bring in an invisible magnetic field around them that draws attention to them.  My oldest son is that way; an extrovert who loves to be around people.  He is a natural storyteller and at family gatherings has often related interactions with people in their various eccentricities in a way that is hilarious.  He doesn’t even realize that he does it; being able to talk easily is just a gift he was born with.  My husband is often like that as well in terms of people noticing him.  In our business world, over the years I have often run into people who met him, sometimes years ago, and still remember him, even in the oddest situations.  I find that both fascinating and annoying.

Then there are those of us who are more like me; introvert that I am.  I have plenty to say though admittedly I prefer writing what I have to say in a blog rather than speaking in a crowded room.  I’m not going to dominate a conversation at a party; I will be friendly (I hope) but listen more than I talk.

Like me, my second oldest son is an introvert.  He is comfortable with his own company and like me, would find a large party to be stressful.  He will not be the one that everyone will be listening to tell a story at family gatherings.  Yet, he will be there because he is considerate, loyal and puts a value on family time.  If anyone takes the time to talk with him one on one, they will find him to be extremely articulate about a wide variety of subjects and enjoyable to listen to.

If I think of words to describe my second son, I think of “quiet character”.  His view of life, of behavior and of the way he wants to conduct himself is based on convictions that run deep within his soul and are part of the very fiber of his being.  I implicitly trust his honesty and the internal integrity that keeps him on a “true north” in his actions and his life.  Even as a young boy, he had an unwavering sense of what was right in his actions and followed his internal compass, which kept him for the most part out of trouble both at school and at home.

My son is going to graduate from the University this May.  He had taken a number of years off between community college and the university (partly in helping us with the business in the early years) and so will graduate at 29.  He has done superbly there; because he has gone back by choice, his perspective is different.  Instead of “getting through” the computer programming classes, he has tried to pull every last bit of knowledge from each class for future use.  He has taken a leadership role with his classmates, with team projects and in working as an assistant to a professor.  In every way, he has put 100% of himself into the university experience.

All that remains now is to interview with the on-campus recruiters and look for a job.  Ideally, he wants to free-lance as a game programmer and so a corporation would only be a steppingstone. It would still give him good experience.

I’m so proud of him and look forward to seeing how his life will unfold.  At the same time, I do feel some nostalgia for the end of a chapter.  We have known from the beginning that when finished with this degree he could move away.  For the past three years, he has been coming over once a week for dinner and that has been a wonderful way to keep up with him.  I know I will miss him dreadfully if he does get a job somewhere else.

It’s part of a parent’s job though to let go when the time comes…he has his life to live.  I have the utmost confidence that he will take that quiet strength of character that he is so imbued with and carry it with him throughout his working career and his life.  Whether he creates the next game that becomes a worldwide phenomenon, or he creates on a modest scale without attention, he will be someone who made the world a better place simply by being in it.