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A day of hello's and a final good-bye

My emotions are all over the place today. It's a very special day in a couple different ways:

To start with, today is the first day of the class I teach at New Horizons Writing School. It is my fourth term teaching Love Reviews, and my last . I created this class, wrote all the lesson plans, and felt the pride my contribution made to the creation of the school. I love teaching, but it's time for my writing to soar again to the top of my priorities list. I'm going to enjoy this last term -- live it to the fullest! And, here's a quick shout-out to any students who have popped in: Looking forward to the next six weeks with you!

Another exciting thing about today is the opening of Round Eight of Leger~ 's "15 for 15 Contest --- Closed" . I LOVE this contest; it's my third time competing. I've finished today's prompted fifteen minutes of writing, and in case anyone would like to read my entry, here is the link:

"Spetember 18 - Clock" 

Now, with so much good stuff starting today, why is it also a day of final farewells? Today, September 18th, 2009, CBS will air the finale episode of my favorite soap opera, Guiding Light. I began watching Guiding Light when I was a ten year old girl. My Aunt Charlene watched it every day, and my cousin and I got sucked into the drama and romance -- and enjoyed sharing something adult with her mother. We spent a lot of time back then at our grandmother's house, and we always asked her to turn on channel four at three o'clock. She became one of the shows biggest fans, and the four of us watched the show -- often together -- ever since. When I went to college, my grandmother recorded (on VHS, of course) the show every day and during breaks my cousin and I would sit with her and watch hours of Guiding Light at a time. Once I was an upper-classman, I never scheduled a class between three and four. In fact, except for the eight years I was out of the country living in Africa and Europe, I have been watching Guiding Light for thirty-three years.

To say that the characters are like family to me is silly and cliché, but true. Through all the marriages and splits, births and deaths, and crazy storylines, I feel closer to them in some ways than to my own extended family. My family is centered in upstate New York, a place I get to only once every couple of years. But the residents of Springfield have been in my home for an hour every day for three quarters of my life. I still can't believe it's ending...

For anyone who doesn't know, Guiding Light is the longest running show in broadcast history. 72 years ago, it premiered on radio. It was the first soap opera to switch from the radio format to television. It is the longest running television show.

Here's a quicky video that will give anyone who's loved this show for as long as I have a lump in the throat. Enjoy.

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