I don't want to nauseate or bore you with "I'm so proud of my son" blog posts, but if you'll be so kind as to allow me to say just one more thing about Ian's recent accomplishment, I'd appreciate it. Last week I shared news of his surprising and thrilling acceptance into the select high school choral group, the Silvertones. As happy as we are about this news, there is one thing that actually has me equally, or possibly more, proud of my son and that is:

His friends were truly happy for him.

Not those fake congrats:

"Wow. Great. Umm, well, my phone's about to die so I gotta go. Catch ya later."

None of that bitterly "honest" feedback:

"Wow, man. I'm really surprised. There's no way you're one of the best singers out of all the guys who tried out. Guess they were desperate for your voice part."

No sour grapes to suggest:

"I guess I should be better friends with the director's son." 

Those "in the know," (aka the Moms) reported that Ian's friends were absolutely thrilled for him. Emily said Noah came home from school shouting with excitement to share the good news. (Unfortunately, he was interrupting her business call at the time.) Hannah's mom, Lee, reported that Hannah couldn't stop talking about how happy she was for Ian.

I think we can all agree that even better than making the "team" is being the kind of person whose friends are genuinely psyched when something good happens to you. That's the kind of friend Ian is. It also speaks volumes about the kids he's friends with. They're clearly keepers.

You'd like to think that anyone who is a true friend would react with enthusiasm to another's good fortune. I can assure you that is not the case. Although I would call myself a "true friend," I must confess to struggling mightily with the green-eyed monster. I recall taking a public speaking class in college with one of my very best friends. On one particular presentation she received a better grade than I did. Was I happy for her? Did I pat her on the back and say, "Good job, buddy!"? Nope. I was pretty much a bitch. Broadcasting was my lifelong ambition, and therefore it was completely unacceptable for her to do better than me in such an important course. If it was a physics class in which she bested me, then perhaps I could have given her props. Perhaps.

One might think that as we become more mature, we would learn to let go of our jealousies and insecurities and embrace the successes of those we love and care for. Not so much. For example, I occasionally resent Emily and Mo, two good friends, for being so damn successful in their careers. Their accomplishments make me feel pretty insignificant and I have contemplated dropping them as friends, just so I don't have to try to compete.

But enough about me. This is about Ian and his friends, a generation of intelligent, talented, and supportive young people who demonstrate the power of friendship and the value of encouraging one another in their journeys.

May we each be so blessed.