Ghosts

              Seven months ago I joked with my closest friends that we should take a road trip to my family’s house. That idea did not leave my mind, but grew until it fully took over into a plan. The plan was to take an epic road trip dubbed, “AwesomeSauceRoadTrip,” in which we would drive from Orlando to Indiana, where we would celebrate thanksgiving with my parents. Yet like any great idea, the growing did not stop, and soon the plan developed into a full fledged adventure with multiple stops in different states, from family to grandparents, from donut shops to coffee shops.

I often have high hopes for moments like these, I dream and imagine what it will be like and wait impatiently for events like these to come. This one did not disappoint. Over the course of those 7 days spent with my closest friends, I fell in love with life, and them all over again. Everything seemed charged with magical moments, whether it was laughing at each other in the middle of the night, or the way they each seemingly fit into my family, or the playfulness of having snowball fights. Every moments was charged with pure delight and drew each of our hearts closer together. As the trip came to a close, I couldn’t help but think of the tragedy it would have been if we would have never taken a silly idea so seriously. I thought of every experience we shared and moments that I cherished and will hold close over the entirety of my life, and asked myself, “What if we said no? What if this trip never happened?” The weight of that potential loss made me realize the line between losing out on an incredible lifetime moment like the road trip, hung on the simple balance of a yes or no.

Almost every moment that has been profound and memorable these last two years in my life have been planned almost one year in advance. It was not easy planning the road trip. It’s hard to get 5 people's schedules lined up, there were times it felt like maybe it shouldn’t happen, or it wasn’t really the right time. Yet every time, we made the choice to say yes instead of no.  

Don’t be haunted by the ghost of what could have been. Don’t live a life of what could be or sometime. Life is waiting for you to say yes, and live into each moment.

Lastly, don’t take your closest relationships for granted. It’s easy to grow lax with those closest to you, especially when you feel like you know them really well. Walking away from this trip, I was reminded of how important it is to never stop pursuing those closest to you, if anything more so than any other relationships. You may know them really well, but put yourself in a car for 7 days straight, or in a snow ball fight, or in your family, and you will get to know them even more.

Moments like these are out there for you, just say yes.