SuperNova Afterglow Spews Embers of Time

Dreams of College Plans

Looking at these private colleges and all the shiny incentives they throw at you reminds of that sleek Cadillac of envy that would be a dream to own. You sit down after presentations and tours and go over all the options and start to think it's doable. They laud the kid with their presidential, top-of-the-line, merit-based scholarship in high figures.  There's a chance of an elite education, to rub elbows with greatness? Getting a fuzzy glimpse of this teen's future might make a person misty-eyed. Then, when those numbers go crunch, the gap between tuition and grants still can't match the cost of a state school. So, you go back down the block and kick the tires on that Plymouth Duster...again...and a BMW buzzes by. I imagine 'I'm a proud alum of...' frame on a vanity plate.

Meanwhile, 'the kid' has just spent his tenth straight hour on the X-Box. The light of a fading day pours in as I enter that room. His pupils constrict as I greet his dull response. That's when the vision of owning a speed boat at my new cabin on a lake arrives. He found his passion. Maybe, I should indulge my dream instead.