and to the cave i love so much.

here comes the sap.

remember the years of elementary school?
we played tag
and slid down the slides.
the boys played on one side of the playgroud
and the girls on the other.
i had a boyfriend whom
i never heard speak
our friends would belay messages
between us for one another.
i broke up with him
because i didn't want to be tied down.
(i was in 5th grade. and an idiot haha)
remember those seniors? couldn't wait to get old and mature like them.

remember junior high?
remember laughing and making friends with the boys.
laying on the couch and watching
hannah montana on friday nights
because me and jamie were the only ones
who couldn't hang out with boys.
remember getting rides everywhere?
remember coming home at 10?
remember wishing you were out of school already
and you still had "soooo many years left!"?
remember awkward? who am i? who are you? and
what do you think of me?
remember those seniors? they had it all figured out.

remember sophomore year?
turning 16 and dating.
remember first kisses?
and getting your license?
and the boys were oh so cute.
remember your first heart break?
how you vowed to "never love again"? haha.
remember the seniors? they looked so big.

remember being a junior?
you thought you had it all figured out.
stuck in the middle.
remember falling in love with your best friend?
remember being rude to a boy who liked you very much?
remember finding yourself?
not caring what you looked like
or who liked you.
remember dad? remember what happened?
and finding some of the best of friends
in the midst of that storm?
remember how back then you couldn't cry?
and remember those seniors? they seemed so old.

and now you're a senior.
if only for a few more hours.
remember the boy you can't get over?
and how you cry almost every day now?
how your heart has been broken
and put back together
almost every week?
remember laughing
laughing more than you've ever laughed your whole life?
remember finding joy in the little things?
and really appreciating a beautiful day?
remember giving up on homework?
and studying for tests?
not one of your best choices
remember your friends?
driving to their houses at 1 in the morning
and reflecting on all the things you've learned?
remember that night on ari's couch? when you realized
that your girl friends were the only ones that would be
there forever.
remember the drives? the stars?
the dances?
and almost failing every class at one point? :)
remember the young ones who made your day?
remember how at the end we were all friends?
and remember that we were the seniors
and we aren't big
or old and we
don't have anything figured out.

and as i'm sitting here
bawling at my computer
i just want to say that i
HAVE had the time of my life.
and i owe it all to my dear cave
and to the caveman inside of it.

love, laura