Out Here Livin'

 March 27, 2023. That was three years ago. Only a month left of undergrad. Scared, excited, and hopeful.  This was a day where I was starting my first "real" job. Completely different from what I thought I would be doing 3 years prior. I had my outfit picked out from the night before, nerves were filling my body from head to toe, and the shoes I was wearing we finally broken into. I remember walking in feeling like everyone could tell that I didn't belong and barely knew what I was doing. Luckily, I sort of did and no one knew better so it ended up working out for me. I remember leaving my first day feeling excited about the possibilities, not just for myself but for the team. It felt like I was on the cusp of something profound and impactful, not to say that I wasn't but maybe it was a bit of a reach to think of it with that lense. I will say that at the time I had drank the Kool-Aid and put on the rose tinted glasses, both of which wore off within 3 weeks thankfully...

There are places we will go and people we will meet for the first time. Maybe we've already gone there or met them. Then comes the choice, the metaphorical fork in the road . Will you ever go there again or was the moment over before you realized? Did you unknowingly say hello to someone who will be with you until your last breath or goodbye without realizing that you wouldn't see them again? There are places we go back to often or more than you expected; this can be your familial home, an old park bench you found on your first walk near your apartment, or even a gas station you went to in a different city years ago. These places hold versions of us that we may have forgotten about, been trying to revive, or simply let go of. Sometimes we never get the chance to revisit these places because they have been closed or changed. Now the difference between reminiscing and being stuck in a time that is already gone is crucial here, because the former is done with a sense of fondness ...