Nostalgia

       I've been feeling very nostalgic as of late. The more and more I think about it, the more and more I really and truly do appreciate my friends from high school. Scott, Rick, Zach, Shannon, CJ, Stephanie, Kim, all of these people played such a big part of helping me learn how to love. The other day I was walking back from class and it just kinda hit me all at once. I was thinking to myself, "Four years ago I was experiencing the best year of my high school career." I went back to thinking about confirmation classes, about going to Nick and Arlene's wedding, about meetings in the beast, about going to Desert Vista football games, about the Life Teen retreats, about all the inside jokes. All of these incredible experiences that made up the best part of high school for me. I went though the list of all those who were closest to me and I just said a prayer of thanksgiving for each and every one of them because every one of them really did make high school bearable for me. 

     

     I started thinking about altar serving and I almost started choking up, it was so weird. I thought about the times that Rick,  CJ and I served for the bishop and we kept screwing around whenever Bishop Olmstead wasn't looking our way. I thought about all of those teen masses that we served together, then I thought about the very last night that we all altar served together and how CJ looked over at me during the communion hymn and said, "Dude, this is our last mass together." Something that drove me up the wall sometimes really did become one of my favorite memories of high school. 

 

     Then I started thinking about all those times that I went over to Shannon's. Goodness, that place was almost like my second home. I remember all the times that Shannon and I had those intense conversations, all the tears, all the laughs... God, sometimes I'd give anything to go back. I never thought I'd say that. I remember the time that Shannon had her wisdom teeth pulled and we all went to Native New Yorker, just these little memories that are more precious to me than anything this world could offer. 

 

    Then, I thought about all the times the "Three Amigos" hung out. Scott, Rick and I were always so stupid. We would do the most ridiculous things, like, go into a gas station restroom and have Scott do his under-arm farting... just to see what type of response we'd get from the people in the stalls. We were so immature, but, we gloried in it. I think fondly of the messages  that Scott would leave me on my cell phone. Messages like, "Hello Mr. Hyland, this is the uh City Morgue, and we're sorry about the loss of your grandfather, but we would suggest that you attend a Desert Vista football game to help with the grieving process," or how many times Scott would just leave me messages that started of with, "Your mom ______" and how I  would just laugh hysterically because it was the greatest thing in the world. I remember the time that Rick and I just went driving for the sake of driving, man, we drove out to the middle of nowhere and it was completely okay, we laughed and joked the whole entire way. I remember all the times that Rick and I talked about women and how they never made any sense at all. I thought to all those times that Rick stood by my side no matter what was going down, he was always there to support me, always there to lift me up, always there to make things better. Praise God for Rick LaFave. I remember referring to Keith as "the clipboard kid" and how Scott misheard me and thought I said, "Keith, the clipboard bitch." I remember hanging out with Stephen Bradford and always feeling so much better. Then, there was the time that we got busted by the cops for throwing water-balloons into the street, which has now become one of my infamous stories. There was nothing in the world that beat the times I spent with the guys. 

 

     Then there were the retreats, oh man, those retreats. I can remember the time that we weren't in Cabin M and how upset we all were. I remember the retreat that we all decided to talk with Minnesotan accents and referred to everything as some type of fish. "Dat's a fish right der dontchano." I remember the tears and the healings that happened on those retreats. The adorations that knocked us on our butts and made us realize how much we needed God. Those were some of the best times of my life and, even though I complained and hated high school at the time, I look back on it and can't help but yearn for those days again. For the days that I could just go on retreat with everybody, for the days that I could call up Scott or Rick and just hang out and do something stupid on a Friday night. So, this is for all of you guys... I thank God for all that you have been and continue to be for me, even though we may not talk as much as we used to, you all still mean so much to me, and I am so thankful for all that you are... know that always.