Back to the Future.

I guess it goes back to the day we moved here.  The actual day we moved in is unclear because it was a process to actually get into the house after the renters took 10 days to move their stuff out and two more to come and get their dog.  But in the beginning days of this house we met our new neighbors who turned out to be my old friends from High School.  We all stood out in the street and laughed our butts off for over an hour.  It was like I never left his place.  Now all my frequent Timp High flashbacks have given way to acceptance.  I just live here now.

But last night I was on Facebook waaay too late as usual and I saw my friend Shawn's photos from his High School days in CA.  They are golden 80's evidence.  He has the best bleached out Mohawk ever.  There is one where a crazy looking redhead in a sailor hat strangles a monkey in some jungle themed Sadie Hawkins portrait.   If you have access, you gotta check these out.  I woke up this morning and went right for the Year Books I had just put into our new bookshelves.  I can't put down the one from 1987, my freshman year. 

I am looking at people I haven't in years.  Like Lincoln Sheranian.  Was he gay?  He was so pretty and had lots of gorgeous girl-friends.  Not that I care to know, I'm just speculating.  I still swear in 1995 when I was in London I saw him on the tube.  Patti Bennion was hilarious and fearless what ever happened to her?   And didn't we all used to looove Josh Forrest?  Heidi Hall looks like she wants to Columbine the lot of us.  Who was Stacie Jacobsen?  She looks like a total rocker.  Lisa Harward was so beautiful and she and Stephanie Whitlock used to ask to see my clothing sketches and were really complimentary about them.  I adored her.  I heard she died in a car wreck in the canyon after she graduated.  Ohhh, Sean Peterson.  I was in love with him forever!  First day of 7th grade I was sliding along the wall to class.  You know, walking with my shoulder to the bricks.  I came around the corner and nearly ran into him.  He said, "Hi Amy" and I honestly nearly threw up.  I could barely say hi back and couldn't get out of there fast enough.  And then hated myself every day for years for not being cooler.  Jon Callister liked me in 8th and his friends told me I just had to like him back.  I heard Sean liked me then, too.  One time I dropped Jon off after taking him around on my scooter and ran into Sean by his house.  I took him for a ride and finally talked to him.  And I was so bummed after all of those years of liking him so much that I was kind of "with" another boy and couldn't like him back.  Jon totally lost interest and liked Melody Warner which I didn't blame him for.  She was cute and cool.  And it didn't occur to me to even try and see if Sean liked me still.  I just was sure that ship had sailed.  I had similar issues with Andy Buckles.  I was just sure that ship had sailed because he dated one of my good friends.  But how cute was he?  I should have hit that.

There is an actual picture of Rod Ash at the Homecoming dance.  This dance was such a big deal to me.  I had met Rod's best friend Don at the cemetery the summer before High School started.  He was a grave digger.  Don the grave digger we called him and my girl friends and I used to think he was such an anomaly.  We would go up there looking for him.  I remember consciously thinking that I didn't care about being cool in school if I could be friends with interesting people like Don.  Don found me at the Homecoming Game and introduced me to his friend Rod.  It didn't take long to see that no one was as unanimously considered popular as Rod, not in our school or any other.  At that Homecoming dance, the first dance of the year, the first song, Rod came over to me and said, "Howdy Sailor wanna dance?"  And the girls I was with almost passed out.  Rod was my first date.  Years later at AUM rush we had to make a swim suit out of like six inches of fabric with no needle and thread and then we had to walk into a room full of Rush Masters and Sigma Tau (Frat brother) leaders with spray bottles.  They would ask you questions and you got soaked if they didn't like the answer.  They asked me who was my first date and other things, but someone asked me where I was when I first kissed Rod Ash, if he was a good kisser.  And I said I didn't ever kiss Rod Ash.  Or Don Terry.  And everyone just sat there stunned and confused.  They ushered me out pretty dry.

At AUM I became friends with Heather Heileson.  There was not a girl in school cooler then Heather and I'll tell you why.  Someone had started a landslide of public negativity about Heather that lasted all four years.  She knew about it for the most part, but she sort of existed on a whole other level.  She was so funny and so smart.  I admired and respected and adored her.  She became a doctor and married a man that thought she hung the moon.  I hope with my whole heart she is happy.

In the Seniors there is DC Wright who I would have married had he formally asked me after his mission and Mike Butterfield who should have kissed me when we were drunk in the rain at Hyde Park in '95 but wisely refrained.  And James.  James William Connelly.  Jukes Bapaloosa.  He looks so handsome.  I haven't seen his face in years and years.  I tore up or burned every picture I had of him.  I had to.  I don't think there ever was a boy more sweet and kind to a girl then James was to me.  And I don't think a girl was ever more devoted then I was to him.  I can still break wide open if I think about it too long.  After we broke up, Malcolm Moody, Eric Larson and Jim Melo were there to pick up the pieces and talk for hours, take me biking and climbing and are still among my dearest and most loved friends. 

All of these years spent with these people.  I know that the consensus is that if High School was the best time of your life you must be a giant loser.  I guess I'm a total has been then.  It was the best time of my life.  Without question.  And I'm seeing that now that I'm home.  I think it was God's plan for me to have a blessed social experience because everything at home was an absolute train wreck from the time I was born.  I'm grateful for these people and that they are still around and I still know them and I'm back here.  It's a big reminder that God wants things to be fun and easy for us.  I hope my kids have the same beautiful crazy messed up moments I had.  I hope Aidan is friends with the Rod of his school and Bella makes Homecoming Queen by three votes.  I hope Aidan sneaks out to meet his friends at Denny's and Bella makes out with a crazy older boy at a Halloween party in front of everyone.  These moments make us smile through paying the bills, the nights cleaning up toddler barf and filing insurance claims after wrecking the car.  At least, they do for me.  

Who the heck is Martha Chadwick?