Friday: Jason walks his FIRST FIVE MILES

I had spent Thursday night with the Sisolaks so Jason, Dow and I arranged to meet in Silver Spring for a movie and late lunch. Jason had to get up before seven to report for the first time to his mandatory "Friday accountability meeting" in the Old Red Cross building about a 5 minute walk from Mologne House. After Jason spent the morning in PT where Kyla served him a surprise birthday cake. Dow said he thought hey had it out of the regular room because the cake could not have been shared by all, the "room was packed with patients." After Jason decided to "walk to Silver Spring and a movie." I arrived in Silver Spring at noon and headed over to the Majestic 20 to catch up with Dow and Jason for....The Pink Panther with Steve Martin andBeyonce. Jason wanted to do a noon showtime because he knew he was strong enough to walk up and and back to WR but did not want to walk the Georgia sidewalks at dark.

If you like Steve Martin and very physcial comedy (like the Keystone cops) and the Pink Panther series with Peter Sellers, I think you will like this one. We all laughed at different times, but we three all laughed. The best medicine! After we had a late lunch at the Noodles restaurant and took a leisurely stroll back to WR in the pretty cold, sun-filled late afternoon. Adding up the walk to and from Silver Spring, Jason did his first "5 miler" and I am very happy for him!

When we got back to Mologne, Jason said, "I need a nap, give me an hour." Dow and I headed to the Metro and spent an hour in a coffee shop near the Takoma stop to let Jason sleep. Dow headed back to the Mologne and I headed back downtown to watch the beginning ceremony to the XX Olympic Games in Turin. I have become addicted to the opening ceremonies and I experience them as a nation saying, "Look who we are!" The Italian opening was this fan's pleaser. Like Bill said, "It was a Fellini!" And the surprise ending couldn't have been better the magic of...Pavarotti!

As the Washington Post sport page noted this morning (p. 14), "Pavarotti opened his pipes wide for "Nessun Dorma," or "No One Sleeps". His patented aria from Puccini's "Turandot" brought his countrymen to their feet. What a moment. The world's most famous tenor, opening the 20th Winter Games with a power and a passion from deep within. Cliche as it may be, it made you want to stand and applaud and yell "Bravo! Bravo!" long into the cold Turin night, until everyone shuffled out of the stadium. The portly man had sung, and suddenly the majesty of the night was done. It was time for Italy's first Olympiad in nearly half a century to begin. Bravo, indeed."

It was so good for me to see the world's young athletes come together. Hope and energy filled my soul, not only for them but for Jason and we who are proud to be the generation who gave birth to these fine young men and women. Blessings and enjoy the Games.