Back to Michigan, Where the Green Grass Grows

It is GREEN in Michigan. Yup, made my way back North to visit family and here I am in small town, Michigan. Think: There's 1 high school with graduating class of 250 kids per year. We've got more water square footage than students in our high school.

Mom's roses are starting to bloom!

I've been coming home for 10 years and …
still find myself on my bedroom floor, re-reading high school notes, looking at old high school photos taken with a throw-away camera and trying to decide - do I keep my varsity basketball practice jersey just one more year? 

Let's not forget - I've got countless journals reliving basketball games and teammate tales, confessing my secret feelings for a new crush and sadly crushed some guy doesn't like me. Like any American teenager in public schools, I wrote about girl drama, my hopes and fears and my young but yearning faith in God.

My high school friends may not appreciate the photos I'm about to share - but man, I got a kick out of seeing these!

Here'a few finds in my old closet:




TRACK. I'll never forget this one. This was when I was part of the 4x800m and we went to the State meet! Unfortunately, our whole track team didn't qualify to go - just individuals. We set a school record that day and each had a personal best time - it was such an exhilarating day! There were a few others from our team that had qualified and I remember celebrating being there, enjoying time with our families in the stands and feeling so strong, successful and supported. Didn't hurt that my Dad was able to fly us there as a team in his plane - Lucky! What a great experience - and definitely a high school highlight!

Our team was Mary the senior, Steph the junior, Nickelle the sophomore and me, the freshman. 

I can still remember track practices where we'd run to the movie theater, take a bathroom break and head back to school just to run a handful of timed 800 meter runs and close out practice with 200 meter sprints with the sprinters. My favorite was mailbox sprints with the girls; we'd run one of the neighborhoods and do a Choose-Your-Own-Sprint Distance adventure. Just us: will, self-discipline, competitiveness and teamwork.  

HIGH SCHOOL DANCES. Now these pictures - too funny! This was some high school dance. We may have snuck out of this one a bit early? The gym was converted into our own snazzy (ha) dance club. Remember dancing in 2001 to Missy Elliot "Get Your Freak On" and Outkast "Ms Jackson" and don't forget Pink "Get The Party Started." And, I don't remember why were dressed so brightly, but I do know these were my close girlfriends. How awkward for the teachers to roam the perimeter making sure we behaved ourselves. I can't even imagine what we looked like to them; now that I'm the teacher parting the love waves between glued-together teenage couples, I just want to say - I'm sorry if I ever made you feel awkward.

Dancing and singing at a 10th grade dance

And. My best friend Amy Phillips and still one of my closest friends today, 16 years later. We laugh. And laugh. And laugh. There aren't words to describe the joy and love we share. We'd eat raw cookie dough, go jet-skiing all day, dance, play sports, snowboard and swim - we'd do anything together. College put distance between us and luckily, coming home means we get to hang out too because she's smarter than me and stayed in the same zip code. And I want to keep laughing, keep crying and keep taking pictures together for a long, long time. 

Spring Break on a cruise with a handful of other friends (and a few Moms, too)

Whether I'm reading past journals, staring into the moments around an old photo or holding a sports medal, I appreciate the artifacts that represent my little building blocks in life. What I most appreciate in this ritual is reminding myself how many people I love and how much they love me, too. It's an incredible bridge that just keeps lengthening.   I've found countless other treasures while digging through my old closet. Favorite find? My journals! Time in Michigan is precious, flies by and often enjoyed on the lake. It's PureMichigan!