Memory Lane

While I was in Virginia I took some time to stroll down memory lane. Over the years I have purged my keepsakes and widdled my collection of pictures, notes, trinkets, etc down to a few banker's boxes and scrapbooks. 


I have discovered that reaching inside a cardboard box and pulling out reminders of events, people, and moments that have passed can be painful, joyful, and sometimes therapeutic. I am not one to destroy things or part with them easily even if they serve as reminders of old wounds, rather I tuck them away until I feel that enough time has passed to patch up my emotions and then I pull the lid off that box and let the memories and lessons flood me with a feeling of reflection and growth. 


While rummaging through my things the other day did not conjure up any strong emotional breakdowns, it did make me feel very nostalgic. I flipped through scrapbooks that covered my trip to Hawaii in ninth grade, my senior year of high school, my college May Term trip to Germany and Poland, and my final days at Roanoke College. I remember the many many hours I spent assembling those mementos and am glad that I took the time to capture and document those moments in my life.


Along with my labor-intensive scrapbooks, I also flipped through some old notebooks that Brie and I used to write notes back and forth in. They are covered in pictures clipped from magazines of teen heart throbs, quotes we strove to live by, and doodles of our names + a long list of random guy crushes. I brought three of these treasures back to NOLA with me and once Brie returns from her vacation later this week I am going to see if she wants to sit down and laugh about how unbelievably ridiculous we were! Here are some particularly comical tidbits I came across while flipping through:


March 4, 2000: (ME) "I was on IM and Sam was the only person on and so I was telling him that I'm way confused w/ all this guy stuff. Then, well by the end of the conversation he likes me and asked if I sorta like him and how long I wanted to stay single. I had answered that I sorta like him especially since he had been so sweet to me lately and that I didn't want to go out w/ anyone until I had figured out my guy problems."
March 14, 2000: (BRIE) "Ok, important stuff! I'm finding myself liking HIM more and more as the days go on. I know he's a pimp and all but even Ashley said that she thinks me and him will be an item soon."
September 10, 2011: (ME) "My brother's birthday is tomorrow. The Big 1-2! I got him a CD with lots of songs on it- Now 7"- and cologne - Gravity - that stuff smells so good! T.J. smells like Josh. I <3 the way Josh smells. I <3 Josh in general. I can't be mad at him. Well I'm gonna go."
October 5, 2001: (BRIE) "I'm so upset, I wanted to talk to Michael last night so bad. And I didn't get my coffee this morning."
August 21, 2002: (ME) "Well-here we are-the beginning of our JUNIOR year! That's right, we are over 1/2 way through with out high school career...I want to wish you the best of luck in the school year to come - not just with grades but guys, gals, dance, work - just life in general! Just remember - I love you and I'm always here for you. No matter what."
May 7, 2003: (BRIE) "Asa told me that Sarah Sorrells told him that Sam Hasey likes him. Well he didn't seem to complain much. He kept saying he would have to call her something else b/c his dad's name is Sam."


Man, sometimes I think it would be nice to go back to the days when all we seemed to worry about was silly high school crushes! LOL