02/22/08

When I first came to Baker I had all sorts of expectations. I figured that within a week I would have broken some poor girl’s heart, made about a thousand friends and more or less have begun my journey of excellence.

About 10 minutes after moving in, I decided I was wrong.

You see, within a day I was already sending out e-mails, IMs and other forms of communication asking my friends if I had made the right choice.

Now, keep in mind, that most of these friends were college freshmen themselves, so they barely knew what was going on, let alone had the ability to counsel me.

I saved all those messages and IM conversations in the hopes that I would someday make something out of them. I don’t know if that will happen, but they sure do make an interesting read.

But Josh, what are you rambling about? I guess I’d like to point out to everyone the importance of memories.

Reading those conversations from so long ago really made me see how much I’ve changed in the last 18 months.

That elusive maturity has kicked in and is trying to stay, and other factors of my personality have also grown.

I think the same can be true for most people. If you were to go back into your closet, toss aside the Hello Kitty slippers, find that shoebox of pictures, open it up and just spend half an hour looking through it.

How much have you changed in the last four years? The last year? The last month?

You see, to me, memory is that one thing that no one can ever take away from you. It’s yours, pure and untainted, for as long as you choose to keep it.

Hard times sometimes overtake us, and in those situations just whip out the Box O’ Good Time in order to cheer yourself up. Memories of good times help sate your thirst for positivity (that’s my word of the week) when such a thing is hard to find.

Be forewarned, however. Taking a trip down memory lane will usually make you feel better, at least it will if you visit the right memories, but many times nostalgia will set in. You’ll want to go back to that time or make this time that time. Impossible but fanciful.

We all have moments where we decide that life would be so much better if we could just go back to that one point in time (mine is July 27, 2007, by the way)…but we can’t. We have to keep our heads down and go back into the breach. Eventually the dam will get plugged, and the valley can go on about its business.

So, what do the last several columns of words mean? Basically, enjoy the time you have, remember the good times fondly, tip your servers and stay away from the voodoo.

As always, it’s been a pleasure, but I have to go find myself, as I chewed through the ropes and escaped again. Have a nice day!