Flashbacks, Reunions, Revelations

My mom was in town this last week, so I spent time with her and haven't posted anything in a while. It was so nice to have her here. I visited people and made trips I probably wouldn't have otherwise. It went by fast, but it was fun.

Now, the real intent of this post. I had an event this weekend, other than General Conference, that caused all of the things in the title of this post. This year is my ten-year high school reunion. I probably won't go, but because it has been ten years, it's kind of been on my mind. Let me explain. I moved away from home about two-weeks after graduating and I have not had contact with any of my friends since that time. Yes, that means ten-years. I only attended the school I graduated from for two years, and really only made connections and had friends for one of those years, so I figured I wouldn't be that memorable. I remember people, but that's a story for another time. Well, last Friday, one of those friends found this blog, left a comment, and pointed me to a way to get in contact with some more of my friends. It was crazy. So this post doesn't get too long, here is a quick run-down of what I meant by the title.

Flashbacks:
- Brad Pitt, my homecoming date. (My friend Juliet and I went to see Seven Years in Tibet instead of going to the dance.)
- One of my craziest moments, I still can't believe they talked me into painting my face blue and orange for a football game.
- Crazy intense soccer conditioning, bus trips to games, warm-up music at home games, and overall fun times playing a sport I love.
- Journalism staff. A lot of fun, and sometimes a good time to figure out my Physics homework.
- Art class. Connecting with Whitney (prim and proper and so nice) and Mike (the definition of crazy), what a strange group.

Reunions:
Catching up with a bunch of my friends.
- Catherine went into Biology as promised.
- Jessica is finishing medical school and working on her residency. No big surprise.
- Jenny getting her PhD, working search and rescue, doing anything imaginable outdoors. Again, not surprising.
- Whitney taking her amazing eye for art and turning toward photography. Her pictures are AMAZING! She really is very talented.
- Andre graduating in Journalism.
- Sara an English professor.

Revelations:
I have two revelations. First, I under applied myself. Granted I did graduate Cum Laude from Weber State with a degree in Accounting, but that pales in comparison to my friends. Among them they've attended University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Yale, Emory, Loyola, George Mason, Northwestern, and University of California - Santa Barbara. And are now Lawyers, Biologists, Professors, Mechanical Engineers, Doctors, Photographers, and Accountants. I was academically competitive with these people in high school, but I'm not sure now. As for my second revelation, it's a little late to learn this, but I've learned that it's okay to keep in contact with your friends. You see, I've moved several times in my life, and have made it a habit to cut ties and move on. But, now I know I don't have to do that. It's okay to stay in contact with the people you know and love. You rejoice with their triumphs, and sorrow with their pain, but most of all, you're just there for each other.

Sorry for the long post. If you've made it to the end you've probably learned more about me that you care to know, but I was excited to reconnect this weekend and now my post is long enough to make up for not saying anything in a week.