Road Trip (Part 9): Nostalgia

Long car rides are brutal on my crooked spine and injured knees.  Deciding to drive six hours out of our way on the way home to visit friends briefly seemed a high price to pay (in physical pain currency, not just gas $), but seeing friends from earlier seasons of our lives was a huge highlight of the trip and well worth any inconvenience.

We drove to the Atlanta area the first day to visit my husband's roommate during his college years at the U.S. Naval Academy.  This visit was the first real opportunity they have had to catch up with one another over the past 16 years.  I was amused by how alike those two USNA grads are.  Our children and his children became fast friends and the kids especially enjoyed their backyard zip line.  My only regret was not getting to spend time with his wife who was out of town.  She is a courageous, vibrant woman who just completed a year of battling and defeating cancer and was off running a 1/2 marathon to raise money for cancer research.   I also regret that his adorable daughter was sleeping when we took photos, so she is not pictured below.

The next day we drove through Greenville, SC where I had spent much of my engineering career as a single woman. I emailed only a few friends to tell them we would be driving through town, so I was very surprised to see so many teammates from my former running team waiting for me at the restaurant we chose for lunch.  Greenville has an amazing running program, Corporate Shields, in which teams from major corporations in the area compete against each other throughout the year with points accumulated at each race.  Michelin's team often took first place, and our masters' (over 40) team could not be beat.  I left Greenville over 11 years ago, yet this program is still going strong.  I miss running with these awesome people every Saturday and Wednesday.  I miss their great humor, steadfast encouragement, and all those races both locally and at Kiawah Island.  I only ran with them for about four years, yet they still remembered me and took the time to come out and join us for lunch.  I was deeply touched.  Other co-workers and friends joined us as well.  Unfortunately, I did not think to take a photo until most of the crowd had already left.



We also stopped by to visit one of my closest gal friends from the area who had served as a bridesmaid in our wedding.  Precious memories flooded by soul as I remembered so many wonderful "God moments" this awesome woman and I shared together.  Her girls are really close in age to our kids, and played beautifully together.  I miss you so much, dear friend.

While driving home that day, I thought a lot about the various people whom God has placed in my path of life.  Some people came into my life like a lightning bolt.  We spent countless hours together as very close friends for a short season and then our paths parted.  Now my memories of times spent with those people have faded.  I don't remember much at all about our time together, but I am surely changed because I knew them.

Then there are others with whom I have only had a few moments of face-to-face communication, yet, they have held a very special place in my heart ever since. 

Then there are my closest family members and special friends who have been a integral part of my life since I can remember.

Each relationship is a beautiful gift from God to be cherished and appreciated.  Seeing these friends after so many years apart was pure joy.