From Vikings to Veterans.

Ahh.. SO strange to be out of my "assigned blogging" element for today, but I wanted to actually let you seep into my thoughts for a minute. (Oh, how boring that may be!) I will finish out the assignment after this post. Enjoy!

VETERANS DAY

Ya'll.. I am SO proud to be an American. 

EVERY. Single. Time. I hear the National Anthem, I want to shed a little tear. We have so much to be thankful for, and I am blessed enough to have people in my life who keep our rights & privileges in tact.

This morning I was leaving town for class, and as I made my way down Main Street, I couldn't help but notice the illusion that the flags created all down the main strip. It was red, white, and blue seeming to be stacked on top of one another lining the side walks of our town. It was such a humbling site to see.

There's nothing quite like a small town.

How true? 

It's true for many reasons.

(One being that in a HUGE town, I may have been so overwhelmed by traffic or pedestrians that I wouldn't have noticed the flags, or maybe in a bigger town they wouldn't have put flags out). It is also true when it comes to hometown sports. 

Last night our small town gathered around the gridiron to have a unique pep-rally for our 8 man (yes, E-I-G-H-T man) football team. They had a whopping 9-1 record at the time that we were all sitting, chilling (literally), in the stands. Let me first warn you that the "1" came about during our last regular season game, and our perfect season was ruined when our rival team upset us.
One by one the cheerleaders were introduced, waving their pom-poms in the night air, and cheering. They then took their place on the field, forming two lines, facing one another. 

The boys of the team were called out by their grade, and they made their way through the cheery cheering cheerleaders. They held their heads high; they walked with pride. 

A local preacher said a quick something before he prayed over the pep-rally, the people, the attitudes, and the outcome. He said he remembered "meeting" them at the beginning of the season & being so proud to stand there last night to say a prayer for them and their travels [today].

"The Boys of Fall" (originally preformed by Kenny Chesney) was sung by a high school Senior from the school, and the boys started a standing ovation. I was listening to him practice from my front porch just days ago, as the notes of the song echoed throughout our little city.

Then, the cheerleaders yelled a few chants, getting the crowd rowled up and the boys excited. They put smiles on peoples faces, and they ensured hope into the boys minds. Cheerleaders tend to do that, in my opinion. They are always behind the boys cheering whether the score is 75-0 or 0-75. The boys know they can turn around and SOMEONE will be yelling a chant for them.

After that, they made their way back to the sidelines while the boys kept their seats on the first few rows of bleachers. & the pee-wee girls made their way out to put on a show. There's nothing like mini-me cheerleaders, cracks me up! They're so darn cute. 

Next, Coach Jeff Terrill stood in front of the boys an motivated them about their upcoming game. He spoke about their statistics and how they didn't matter now. Every game that had been played prior to this one was over, and now it was time to start anew.. tomorrow... on the field... with another team who want a win just as bad as we do. He reminded them that 1:00pm wasn't an ideal time for a football game, and that required some adjustment, but basically - he set them up to be prepared. He spoke to them about having will and going to do their best. 

They were then greeted by Deuce McAlister. (former Ole Miss player & NFL Saints player) He motivated them as well. Coming from someone who's been there before, I can only imagine the honor the boys felt having listened to those two men.

I haven't played a day of football in my life, and his [Coach Terrill's] speech made me want to suit up & hit somebody! The entire night had that affect on me. My body was overwhelmed by chill bumps more than once, and it may have been partially due to the temperature, but it had a LOT to do with the presence of the town, the atmosphere that surrounded me, the closeness of our school & athletic department, and the love of the game that was shown through nearly every individual there. 

Today the boys set out at 8:00am to face the Championship game - something that hasn't been done in our football history in quite some time. Nerves filled the bus seats, and the parents were proud to slip on their blue and gold and motivate south towards the gridiron. Many fans followed, but some stayed home and listened to the game via talkshoe.com. 

We waited anxiously for the game to start, and by half-time the opposing team had 12 points on the board. Family and fans kept their faith, and we waited until the second half. 

During the third quarter, we scored 2 touchdowns with no conversions.

The Vikings went on to call a loss at the end of the game 58-12, but they didn't lose a fan. If anything, they gained fans for bestowing class among all the people they were around. They could have stormed off the field or caused a scene, but instead they kept their cool. I wasn't there to see it for myself, but I would hope that they walked off the field the same way they walked onto it - with their head held high.

Sure, there were tears. I'm sure there were lots of tears, but those tears don't just come from having less points on the board - those tears come from having to leave it there, never getting another chance in high school to change that score, the memories they take with them as they carry their colors to the locker room for the last time. Those tears come from the happiness, saddness, anger, love, compassion, and brotherhood that those boys have made over the last thirteen years, 

and it all came down to today. 

They became veterans today. Veterans of high school football. Sure, they haven't fought overseas, but they've fought for wins, for each other, for their colors, for their school, for their town. 

I couldn't be more proud to be a Viking. I wouldn't have it any other way.  

I couldn't be more proud to THANK a Veteran, to know a Veteran, and to love several Veterans.

You're not forgotten.

We'll always remember you.

i will remember you, will you remember me?

Ohhh... we've graduated. 

we've turned our tassels, thrown our hats in the air, unzipped our gowns, and marched down the "aisle" for the final time. 

The blue & gold will run thick through some of us because in a way we've left something behind that will never be replaced, but for others, they walked out and didn't realize what wanted to look them in the eye. The memories that are inside those four walls will often creep up on me, and i'm okay with that. Fighting back the way things used to be isn't something I want to do. I enjoyed high school, I loved being a part of  a team, a class, a family. I wouldn't take any of those years back. 

 It may be too early to say this, and I promise I will come back and blog if I change my mind - BUT know this: I understand that there comes a point whenever you just have to move on. Being stuck in the same place for too long isn't good for anyone, especially when they know they need to be doing something else. I am excited about what the future holds, and I cannot wait to start a new chapter in my life! 

No, onto another (lighter) subject. 

SO SO SO many people have asked me if we're going on a Senior trip. 

The answer to that is YES!

The class is leaving Sunday going to Ft. Morgan to stay at the beach until the following Friday. 

Am I going? No! 

 This was totally my decision, and it had absolutely nothing to do with "who all was going", "being away from home", "the beach" (because, as many of you know, i'm really not IN LOVE with the beach. I do like it, but not quite love), nothing to do with any of that. I would have probably had an amazing time being there with the class, and I know that there are so many memories to be made next week while they're there. But my senior trip will also involve many memories for me as well, and although it won't be beachside with my class, it will be something that I know I won't forget.

 Since I adhered to love of the outdoors, I have wanted to kill a moose. I know, I know, "there as big as a house", "what would you do with a moose?" I've heard it! Ha! I honestly don't know why i've always wanted to kill one, but lets be honest, his antlers would make for storage space if all else failed! HA, kidding. 

 Anyway! My senior trip is NOT going to Alaska to kill a moose, but I am going hunting with my daddy. 

  

 I AM THRILLED beyond words. After watching countless hunting shows (partially my fault, partially dad/brothers fault), the Milk River has become somewhat familiar to me because so many people enjoy going there to hunt.

 One in particular would be my (personal) favorite, Michael Waddell that hunts for Realtree Outdoors. 

a few shots from MR.

So, that's my senior trip story! I will go to the beach this summer with Mom, Mimi, and Meg. I look forward to spending time with Mom & Mimi at the beach. We always enjoy ourselves!

Have a great week! :)

memories as good as gold.

there's something about this time of day,
this time of year,
the smell outside,
the way the sun sets low with a deep orange glaze behind it,
the cool breeze that hits just as the afternoon sets in,
the hustle & bustle of everyone anxiously awaiting summer,
the sound of the crickets chirping,
the lightening bugs dancing through the sky,
all of these things make me want to write.

 For the last few days, i've had the opportunity to have some serious "me" time. That hasn't been a very prominent part of my life lately, and it's been good to enjoy it for the last few days.
 Yesterday, I rode out through the country and even turned my radio down for awhile. I began thinking back through the past, and i find myself doing that a lot, but yesterday it was different.
 I began thinking about the nights before the first day of school, and the way i couldn't sleep for being so excited. I can remember waking up before my mom would come in, and i would pretend to be asleep. i always looked forward to seeing everyone, especially the people that i hadn't seen all summer.
 I would get up, brush my teeth, hair, and change into an outfit that had been bought for that particular day, and go downstairs. I had packed my backpack the night before with all of my new school supplies, and after breakfast I was ready to go.
 Matt and I would more than likely fight over who got to sit up front (even though we were only going a half a block down the road), and oftentimes he won that battle. The butterflies usually set in as we pulled in the circle drive of the school. Weaving through the sea-saws, the people, the mothers, and the teachers, I made my way into my classroom where all of the familiar faces were shining just as bright as mine. I can't remember all that we discussed, but it probably included how cool our new lunch boxes were, or what we brought for snack-time.
 I remember the particular smell that the hallway had after not experiencing it all summer, and the way there always seemed to be something new on the playground on the day of our first recess. That playground seemed endless to me when I was younger.
 As the years have progressed, I've slept fine through the night before the first day, and even in the mornings i don't have to pretend to be asleep because usually I AM! I still recognize the "first day of school" smell, but it takes me a little longer to get ready than it used to. I no longer have to fight with Matt over who sits where or what we listen to because he drives his own vehicle to work, and I take myself to school. I don't have to weave through toys or people simply because i'm usually running late. The talk at school isn't about our lunchbox or what's for snack; it's about when our first holiday is, and what we did over the weekend.
 Then i began thinking about softball. The first day of summer practice when we had to interrupt laying out to put on clothes that would (more than likely) cause a tan line, come to practice, smother in heat (without the exception of diving off in a pool), and running. Or maybe the first late February practice when it's too cold to breathe, the bat stings your hands as you swing, and you have on too many layers of clothes to move. The games where we traveled hours to play, watched movies or gossiped, sometimes slept, but nevertheless, we made memories. The softball field has been the link that's held me to some of the friends that I have. It's the place that keeps our memories a secret, and it's the place where a lot of us feel the most comfortable.
 I started thinking about how the first days of school from now on will be shared with unfamiliar faces, and playing softball won't ever be as comfortable for me because I won't be playing it with the girls that i've grown up with. The Christmas break stories will never collide because we won't be in class to share, and Spring Break will more than likely (for some people) consist of new people they aspire to make memories with.
 Then I skipped to the first pep rallies, the way the screams from the gym would echo all the way down the halls, and the blue and gold would flash through the bleachers like strikes of lightening. I'm burned with the image of nervous boys making their way out on the football field in a straight line to stretch and later make their way to the sidelines. The sound of the National Anthem rings clearly in my head, and it seems as if the entire town has shut down and gotten out of their vehicles to salute the flag. As the sun is setting, the boys are kicking off, and our small town is alined all the way around three sides of the field to watch their every play. There are Alumni, teachers, students, and children everywhere.
 Or maybe it's the high school weekends that i'm going to miss so much. Riding around to old country music, talking about what we think the future might hold, stopping on an old dirt road and turning it into a small party of people. Maybe it's the close-knit relationship of everyone I have around me that i'm afraid of losing.
There have been so many memories i've made with my classmates over the last thirteen years, and I can only hope that the greatest ones will remain instilled into my brain until i'm too old to remember my own name.
 I don't write this in regret. I have done my best to live out every moment for fear that it would all slip right through my fingers, and I would want to go back. That has happened, even though I haven't done it intentionally. People say, "All good things must end", and I see that. I'm looking forward to the future, to life in a new way, a different normal, but it is bittersweet to watch it all fading into the past. I'm not naive to say that just because i'm graduating in three weeks, there will be no more sporting events to attend, no more small town weekends, or anything to that nature. I'm simply saying that it will be a slight change in atmosphere for all of the sixteen graduates. We will all, in some way, form or fashion, grow away from each other (or most of us will), and that too, is bittersweet.

in the blink of an eye.

You know, I can't help but stop and laugh at life sometimes, realizing how things change in a single second.

On September 16, 2008, my best friend called to inform me that he had figured out where he needed to be. As the rocks crunched underneath my cleats & I walked to my truck on the phone, my emotions were running wild. I was happy and sad all at the very same time. Now, a year later, I can't imagine being more proud of Clint. I'm happy to be a friend of his, happy to support him, and only sad about the fact that we are unable to hang out, and only have a limited amount of time to talk. You know what, though? Its okay. He's found where he needed to be, the United States Marine Corps, and it's funny because it seemed to have happened in the blink of an eye.

On May 10, 2009, I walked into my "last-first" day of high school. It really was just an ordinary day, but I sometimes feel like I'm walking on a bridge, unable to see the ending, and the planks behind me slowly fall into the ground leaving me stranded with no way back. Although I wouldn't go back and change a single thing, I'm already turned around wondering, "did I do everything I could? Did I make the most of it?" All of while I'm in the present trying to make the most of IT, too. I've grown up with the best class, best friends, best school, and best faculty that encourages me that I could have ever asked for. Yes, we have had our share of tears & maddness, but the laughs & smiles of the past thirteen years have overridden any of those other emotions. Not many people can say that they know everyone in their graduating class on a personal level, but I can; also, sixteen other people can. We have always been there to comfort each other, which leads me to saying just how different next year will be. I can't imagine not being able to look behind me and strike up a conversation with Walker, laugh with Megan & Hollie during Latin class, cut up with Alex, Lillian, and Veronica on the softball field, or cheer on the boys at a sporting event. Some things just won't be the same anymore, simply because they change in the blink of an eye.
On September 21, 2009, I watched a classmate, an athlete, a son, a boyfriend, a brother, a leader, a companion, a senior play his last football game of his high school career. In one play he was shot to the ground like a bolt of lightening. As his team took a knee, the only sound to be heard throughout the entire stadium were the echos of his screams, and the sniffling of the teary-eyed fans. No one wants to watch a tradegy take place in the life of someone else, and no one wants to go back to the rememberance of it either, but to find an ounce of joy (or pride) on September 21, you could look at his teammates. They oozed pride for their brother. Although their hearts were honestly breaking in two, they stepped up to the plate & finished the game FOR HIM.. All because things changed for him in the blink of an eye.

at the end of the road..

I can't tell you how many times I cried last year after the Seniors last day.

Walking down the hall, being in the cafeteria, football, baseball, softball, even the cheerleading squad loses a piece that it'll never have back. One less heart will step out on the line to represent their school. That breaks my heart every single time - and to think that next year, every step is one less step...it makes me want to backspace all of this and not even write.

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This is a time of the year that some people anticipate, and some people dread. I know that for me it will be a little of both. It will also consist of maybe being anxious, nervous, scared, excited, worried, etc.

This is a time that some see as “the end”, others view it as "the beginning". It is a time of transition & change. It is (to me) both the end and the beginning.It’s the end of: a unified friendship in the classroom, the familiar smell in the hallways that link back to your childhood the lunchroom “fights” & table gossip, a Friday night football game, cheerleading drama, softball chants, left field lounges, basketball, the celebrations. It’s the end of being able to ease by a tardy in the mornings when you decide you needs a few extra minutes of sleep (or maybe you just felt like making a loop), skipping class just to wander down the halls, and talking at your lockers WELL past time to be in class. It’s the end of turning being able to turn around & see your best friend sitting beside or behind you, of knowing that they’re right there to comfort you if that’s what you need, to laugh, to cry, to hug, or simply just to be there.

It’s also the beginning - the beginning of a lot of things: college, new faces that could quickly become best friends, and a new atmosphere. It’s the beginning of your life, of moving on, the beginning of the next step to getting married and having children. It is the beginning of everything you’ve wanted to do & haven’t been able to. It is the beginning of making all your dreams come true. (:

Graduation.


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”Time, sometimes the time just slips away,
and your left with yesterday – left with the memories.
I’ll always think of you & smile,
and be happy for the time I had you with me.
Though we go our separate ways, I wont forget,
so don’t forget the memories we made.”



Congratulations, Class of 2oo9!