Jude arrived back from Nepal last Sunday night after an epic trip where he flew from Kathmandu to Delhi, then to Zurich and on to Denver. It took almost 36 hours door to door.

He was tired but in good spirits. He enjoyed his last few days at the National Park and then his two days in Kathmandu before flying out. He made a couple of American friends at the hostel and went out with them and just wandered around the city. He has had a quiet week at home as his body adjusts back to Denver time.

Marcy and Anna with David in downtown Greenville

Meanwhile, Marcy and Anna left first thing on Monday morning to head to Greenville, South Carolina, for Anna’s first college trip. Marcy’s aunt and uncle (who are basically the same age as Marcy) live in Greenville, so Marcy and Anna stayed with them the first night. They both went to Clemson, so they were happy to sell Anna on how great their alma mater is.

Clemson is number one right now

They visited Clemson, Charleston, UNC Wilmington, UNC Chapel Hill and NC State. Of the five colleges, Anna said that Clemson was her favorite. She said NC State was her second favorite. She loved the feel of both campuses, and they also have a great cheerleading program.

Stopping for lunch at the top of the mountain

With Jude still in Nepal, for Father’s Day this year it was just the three of us. I decided we should go for a hike in the mountains so we were out the door by 9am and on the trail just after 9:30am.

With my favorite girl on top of Bergen Peak

We did Bergen Peak, a trail near Evergreen, that is a good challenging hike and not that crowded. Marcy and I did it about 20 years ago but I don’t think we have been back since. It was a hot day but thankfully we had some cloud cover for the second part of the hike. We did the 11.6 miles in around 5 1/2 hours, which included a nice break on top of the mountain for lunch.

Jude with his favorite elephant called Rupa

We hear from Jude most days. He is enjoying his time in Nepal but it is hard work at the Elephant Sanctuary and he is exhausted at the end of the day. He only has two more days and then he spends his last four days in Kathmandu before flying out on Saturday night. We can’t wait to see him when he lands back in Denver on Sunday afternoon.

Just after Jude’s high school graduation ceremony

It was a big week.

Jude graduated from high school, and Anna finished her sophomore year. Then, Jude left for a big end-of-high-school trip to Nepal via Dubai.

His official graduation photo

Getting to the finish line for Jude was not easy as he had a bad case of senioritis. But he buckled down and did what he had to do to make it through. His grandparents drove out from Iowa to be with him which I know he really appreciated.

Jude receiving his high school diploma

The big day was this past Wednesday. He had to be at the DU, where the ceremony was, at 9:30am. We arrived by noon and the ceremony got going at 1pm. As these things go, I thought they did an excellent job. The speeches were good, and not long winded, and they added some nice touches. I particularly liked hearing from the dozen seniors at the end, many of whom came from difficult circumstances around the world.

The celebrations begin as all the graduates throw their caps into the air

The immediate family celebrate with Jude

When it was over we met Jude outside and he was happy, I think it was a relief to get this all over with. Marcy’s cousins, Michele and Tony drove down from Pine and we all gathered for a celebratory dinner of Indian food – Jude’s choice.

I had to take a redeye to NYC on Wednesday night as I was speaking at a conference on Thursday. So, I wasn’t around as Jude got ready for his big three-week trip to Nepal. Luckily, I was able to make it back in time to see him off at the airport.

Jude in Dubai in front of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world

He flew from Denver to New York, then to Dubai where he had a 17-hour layover, and on to Kathmandu, Nepal, where he arrived on time early this morning our time. He hooked up with his volunteer group, where he is spending two days for orientation and then on to Chitwan National Park where he will be volunteering at the elephant sanctuary.