He Did It!

A couple years ago, My Favorite and I sat on the couch in our living room, and he told me he wanted to go back to school. There were challenges, of course. Money, time, schedule, not to mention the fact that it has been ~ a while, shall we say ~ since he was in a class room. But we laid out all the challenges and found ways to make each of them work.

And he was accepted to Cumbria University's online MBA program. Through two fire seasons where he was balancing school with fighting fires and crappy internet access in helibase trailers, and two years where he was having to manage a 100-year-old house, he managed to get it done. 

He knew he wanted to walk during his graduation ceremony, but he wasn't sure if he could. I knew we'd make it happen. And so we did. On July 16, 2025, My Favorite was at Carlisle Cathedral graduating with his master's degree.

We got ridiculously lucky, because as soon as he got the email with the dates, we looked for hotels. The one we found had a mixture of historical character and modern amenities, we could afford it for a week, and it was in walking distance of the cathedral. YAY!

What we didn't realize was that the hotel was the official hotel of Cumbria University's graduation week and all the events were there. Nor did we realize that within weeks of us getting our reservations, the rates went up. We were exactly where we needed to be, completely inadvertently. 

I plan on writing more about the trip and Carlisle in general but not here, not now. This is all him. Because he did it.

The man next to him is Nick. They got along famously. As we were going our separate ways later that evening, Nick said, "Thank you for being so nice. I was really nervous." 🥹

 Proud doesn't begin to cut it. Well done, my love.