Well now that I'm going back and reading my previous posts, I'm realizing how much I've changed. How much I've grown, and how much I've learned within a few short months.
I start school in two days. My Sophomore year in high school! Can I just say that I am SO excited!?!?!
I AM SO EXCITED!!!!
This year I am a member of Concert Choir, Choreography Team, Yearbook Staff, and a week from Wednesday I will be auditioning for this year's school musical, Grease! I will be auditioning for other Musicals/Plays around the area and attending as many choir rehearsals for my church choir as possible to keep me occupied at all times. (I'm sure I won't have any trouble with that) I will also be participating with Waynesboro High School's YoungLife program which I did last year as well. I won't be dancing this year on an official dance team, but I will have many opportunities to choreograph this year. Because I'm not dancing this year, I'll be able to attend as many sport events as I would like, which is a HUGE deal for me. It's going to be an extremely busy/AMAZING year!
But before I get too far ahead of myself, let me tell you about my summer.....
To be honest with you, this summer, I didn't do much of anything at all. I spent 1/4 of it sitting at home watching as much Grey's Anatomy as I could. I completed Seasons 1-5. I'm addicted. I played lots and lots of piano, and I sang all the time. But that's normal... I also got a "job" as some would call it. I cleaned my whole entire house and got paid $40.00 a week for it. So if you need anyone to clean your house, I'm your girl! I clean when I'm angry or upset, and I must say that I do a pretty good job of it.
I also spent a good amount of time with my friends. I got particularly close to my friends, A.J. Jackson, and a group of college students that would be leaving in the Fall. I spent most of my days with all of them. I love my friends that are my age, so much, and they know that. But it was so nice to spend time with some older people. I learned a lot about them, but even more about myself. They gave me some awesome advice, and a lot of lessons to learn.
My mother, sister, and I got to take a trip to Atlanta, Georgia to see the christening of my new baby cousin. We got to spend time with that side of the family and catch up with them. Not to mention we all got to sit through an hour of Catholic Mass, together. It was a great first experience.
Another thing that I did this summer was play this AWESOME game called Fugitives. Ever heard of it? I'm sure you have because it's been on the news......EVERYWHERE. See?
http://www.nbc29.com/story/15264924/fugitive-game-comes-to-waynesboro
http://www2.newsvirginian.com/news/2011/aug/13/local-police-warn-teens-playing-dangerous-game-ar-1235696/
What can I say? We're famous. :)
I had plenty of those summer nights when I just thought "Wow. That was awesome." and "Oh my gosh, I'm really blessed."
There is not an exact event that I can place my finger on that made my summer absolutely incredible. But I had a huge epiphany during my very last couple weeks of summer.
My family usually takes a trip to the beach every summer, and this year we got to go to Myrtle Beach, which is my favorite! My mom went down a week early for a reunion with some of her high school girlfriends and they all stayed in a really nice beach house. The day they all left is the day that my dad, my sister, and I drove down to stay at the beach house for a few days! First we stopped by and visited some family. The beach house was awesome! I got my own room and bathroom, as did my sister and my parents. We had originally planned to have at least four or five days at the beach, but those days got cut short.
The morning that the three of us were supposed to leave, my dad called my sister and I to give us the news that my great-aunt, Dot, had passed away the night before. We decided to still go to the beach but cut the trip a little short.
We had a blast at the beach. Well, except for the first day....I won't go into details, but let's just say that there was a giant raincloud over the McLean Family the entire day. And yes, that was the ENTIRE day. The next day we decided was going to be great. And it WAS! Except for the fact that it was our last day...but it was still so much fun.
The next morning we packed all of our things into the car and headed back towards North Carolina for the funeral.
Let me just say, that I had never been to an official funeral of someone that I knew, so I was extremely nervous on the way there. I'm not good with sad/depressing things so I wasn't exactly looking forward to it. The four of us walked into the Fellowship Hall of the church that the funeral has held, and let me tell you, it was FULL of McLean's and McCormick's. It was just so loud! I was overwhelmed by the noise and afraid to look around, but as soon as I listened to some of the conversation, I relaxed a little more. The room was full of Dot's family. An extremely large and loud family that loves Dot more than anything. After conversing with a few family members, everyone was asked to circle up and hold hands in prayer. It was one of the most powerful things I've ever experienced. After the prayer was over, we all lined up to proceed into the church.
During the service, many stories of Dot's adventures were told. Everyone laughed hysterically. For those of you that don't know Dot, let me tell you, there was never a dull moment with her. She never met a stranger and could always, ALWAYS, brighten a mood. The service was not to mourn or grieve about Aunt Dot's death, it was a celebration of her life.
After the service, we all gathered back where we met and ate some yummy southern food. It was such an honor to catch up with this side of the family that we rarely ever get to see.
I wished so much that my dad's parents, Grandma and Paw-Paw, could have been there with us. But I know they were having an awesome time with Dot in Heaven.
On the Sunday of my second-to-last full week of summer, my sister and I drove down to North Carolina, on our own, to visit my great-grandmother, Nita, and my grandmother, Myrna. They are both on my mom's side of the family.
While we were there, we didn't do much of anything. The four of us sat around, talked, and ate, which is what we do best.
My great-grandmother, we call her Tita, will be turning 90 this September. We'll be having a huge celebration for her, so we talked a lot about that. It's gonna be amazing!
As I'm getting older, I'm beginning to cherish every moment with Tita. She is an amazing woman.
Now, I spent my very last weekend of summer in the hospital with my big sister. She had a bad spot on her leg and had to be put on 24 hour IVs overnight. She remained in that hospital for over 24 hours, and I didn't leave her once. It was actually kind of a good experience knowing that would be the last time our family would all be doing something together for a while.
She was admitted to Augusta Health on Saturday morning, and we returned home on Sunday evening. Today is Monday and the four of us are all back home now. Today, we packed up her things for college. Tomorrow, we are moving her in to her own apartment! WOOOOHOOOOOOOO!!!! She is living with two close friends that Graduated from Waynesboro. It's gonna be awesome! She will be a sophomore as well, but at Virginia Tech. Go Hokies!!!
It is so ironic to me that nothing exciting at all happened to me until the very last moments of summer. I guess that just makes going back to school more exciting, right?
If I learned anything at all this summer, I learned that family is the most important thing to me. In the whole wide world. I got to see all three members of my family, and yes that is three as in 1+1+1. That never happens, ever. The many members of my family that I got to spend even a small amount of time with are such a blessing to me. They teach me so much in every conversation. I am extremely blessed with the family that I was given. I'd like to thank these people for being so amazing and constantly loving and teaching me: Momma, Daddy, Suzi, Uncle Bill, Kit, Jane, Alan, Grand-Myrna, Tita, Kimberly, Fleet, Tony, Lauren, Booker, Scotty, Big Daddy, Grammy, Tara, Scott, Christopher, Thomas, Taylor, Tanner, Jonathan, Heather, Addison, Tim, Cherith, Helga, Dell, Mary and John Johnson, Stuart, Sara-Peyton, Wait, Neil, Morgan, Kendall, The McCormick's, The McLean's, The Harrell's, The Edwards', The Truscott's, and Grandma, Paw-Paw, and Aunt Dot in heaven.
I spent most of my nights with a group of college kids. And in doing this, I knew that I would have to pay the consequence of letting all of them leave me behind at the end of the summer. Most of them probably didn't realize or even begin to think of the impact that they made on my summer, but I have such a special place in my heart. To my sister, Ben, KJ, Lauren, Travis, Patrick, Seth, McDevitt, and anyone else who played Fifa in our living room, walked to Sheetz with us, or sat in folding chairs under our carport until three in the morning, thanks for making my summer amazing. I had so much fun and I definitely won't forget this summer! Don't forget about little old me in Waynesboro when you all take off at the end of this summer.
Shout out to my boy A.J. Jackson for being my brother and partner-in-crime! I LOVE YOU!!! BMH
I would also like to thank two of my best friends since we were too young to remember, Abigale and Julia, Scout and Hannah for scooping me away from the annoying drama and making me laugh till I cried, and the other three pieces to my heart; Kari Elizabeth, Hallie Dawn, and Paige Alizabeth. You all constantly reminded me of what love is. Thank you is not enough.
Some people might put a label on my summer as "boring" or "cheesy" but it was one of the best summers I have ever had. Thanks to anyone and everyone who was a part of my life this summer! Love you guys so much.
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