Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Ferris Bueller, you're my hero.

It is always a pity when really smart contestants on Jeopardy have absolutely no personality. Smile, man. Your neurons have won you 20,000 bucks, and your attitude is stinking up my television. Oh snap! He's losing. Final Jeopardy should be interesting. (In case you can't tell, I'm watching Jeopardy as I write a long-overdue blog post.)

Spring Break came and went. I went home for a few days for much needed friend and family bonding time. I saw my small, close group of friends from church and high school. It amazes me how much our conversations change each time we get together. Five years ago, we talked of college, boys, and being famous. Two years ago, we talked of graduating college, apartments, and roommates. A year ago, we talked of a friend's wedding, graduate school, and jobs. Last week, we talked of babies (one of the girls is expecting!), buying houses (another of the girls is buying a house!), and dream roles in theatre (another dear friend just finished playing Maureen in "Rent"!). It is amazing how some of our dreams have remained the same or even gotten stronger, while other dreams have morphed into something completely different.

I have always loved change, as long as I have complete control over it. But this growing up business I have no control over. As the very wise Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." No kidding, Mr. Bueller. I've come to realize that the older I get, the faster life goes. This is soething they don't teach you in your sophomore Life Skills class. Instead, they teach you how to plan dinner parties and tell you to always date in large groups.

And the older I get, the more nostalgic I become. Pretty soon, I'm gonna start saying stuff like, "When I was your age, I used to drive to school WITHOUT a cell phone" and "When I was your age, I didn't even know what texting was." I have also found that I have been drawn to activities that I used to participate in when I was eight. Which might explain why I completed task number 29 without even realizing it. I was hanging out in the backyard, enjoying a day that would make most summer days jealous, when I noticed an absolutely perfect climbing tree tucked away in a far corner of the yard. I was drawn to it like a kindergartener to a brand new set of fingerpaints and a clean white wall. You know, even though it wasn't as scary and high up as it was when I was under four feet tall, it was still just as exhilarating.
I'm thinking I've found a new stress-reliever.

(By the way, Mr. I-Don't-Know-How-To-Smile lost Jeopardy.)