Varietal Tuesday (Sans Grapes)

What a title, eh?

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My oldest nephew just started college, and as he's begun this new part of his life, it got me thinking about my college days — and days older still.

Time is weird, you know? A few months ago, I was at a friend's salon waiting to get a haircut, and in walks a girl I went to school with. We passed the basic pleasantries like "how's it going?" and "how's the wife/husband," etc., etc, then we both just sat there in awkwardness. I mean, me and this girl (woman, now) grew up together, and we've known each other since we were like 5 years old — so we're talking about knowing each other for over 30 years. THIRTY! However, we had nothing to say to one another — we were just two totally different humans with totally different lives, both just happening to live on the same planet. How crazy is that? You know someone all your life yet you still have nothing to say to them.

This got me thinking about the friends I had in Jr High and High School, and most of those people have just gone by the way-side. Think of the hundreds of people you spent 5 days a week with, and think about how little you knew about most of them. Where are they now? Who knows. What are they doing? Beats me. The more you think about it, the more you (or I do, at least) think about all the stupidity and foolishness, and you wish you could take some of it back. Good grief, who knows what memories stand out when people think of me. Oh well.

What's cool, though, is the friends that were made back then who are still our friends today. Sweet Moses, the stories Jeremy and I could tell (we just need to find Wesley)! And every once in a while, I'll stumble upon another old friend, which is nice. I bumped into a gal I grew up with just the other day, and that was cool. She was the girl that was fully accepted into our Guy Flock, and she held her own quite well amid the testosterone. Now she lives in London with her hubby (isn't that what that call them over there?), which sounds about right for her.

Fast-forward to college, and the cycle repeats. My greatest friendships were born in college — the main one being with my wife. Other than her, I have guys I know I could call at any hour of the day for anything, and they'd do their dadgum best to help out in any way they could. Friends you can go for years not seeing, but when you're back together, it's like you pick up right where you left off. That's cool — and chances are, we'll always stay in touch with each other until one of us finally kicks out.

All of this makes me reflect on days long gone, and part of me wishes I could go back and keep my mouth shut at times, and then open it at others. But such is life, no? I hope my old friends are doing well, the ones I never talk to any longer. I hope they have found happiness, contentment, fulfillment. I hope they have discovered that there's a God in Heaven that loves them just as they are. I hope they have found true joy, and that they have found someone to love and cherish. I hope they are doing something they love, and that they're making the world a better place, one home at a time.

So Trip, if you're reading this, take it all in. Never rush yourself. This is one of the best times of your life, and it's here that you'll make those life-long friends that will always be there for you — and that you can be there for. Be yourself, and don't try to live up to anyone's expectations that don't fit who you really are. Push to be the best you can be, never settling for just the mediocre — and surround yourself with people who live out that same philosophy. Of course, I must interject that Dave and Jim are probably getting a kick out of me saying that, but we were the best at what we did, which was being cool, of course. =)

Oh, and if you are reading my site and you see me talking about all the cigars I smoke, you uh, shouldn't do that. It's bad for you. And make sure the girls you date live at least 50 miles away from one another — 70, if you call pull it off.

Posted by (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 08/26 at 03:17 PM

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On 08/26 (04:45 PM), (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) said...