Every June brings a day that as a kid you can’t wait for it to get here. As I get older I still enjoy this day and the happiness it brings but with the happiness it also brings a bigger number. A number that when I was younger I couldn’t wait to hit the milestones. 16 I was able to drive, 18 I was a legal adult and 21 I could partake in the adventures at the bar. But after 21 what milestone do you have next? 30, 40, 50? But each year you have to face that day. The day that also makes you sit back and think about what you have accomplished that last year. The day that makes you set your goals for this year. The day that is called your birthday is the day in June that I now have a bittersweet feeling about.
June 21 is that day for me. It is the longest day of the calendar year and some years it is even the hottest. It is a day that as I get older I like to take the time to once again reflect on the last year and set goals for the year that is in front of me. This year instead of staying home and enjoying a lunch and dinner with loved ones, I went on the road and headed to Boise to get a trailer. What better place to reflect then on the road, in a vehicle by yourself, all the time in the world and the radio to spark memories and thoughts.
This last year was one for the books. I had an incredible year surrounded by loved ones and friends. I traveled the USA for work. Met new people, made new memories and stood by the side of a loved one when they found out it was cancer that we would be fighting. But even with that obstacle the year I was 27 definitely was incredible.
I was able to see the fireworks fall over the ocean in Pismo Beach with a good friend, got to marry a friend off to the man of her dreams, was there when my friend’s son harvested his first buck, got to watch my first live college football game, enjoyed a road trip to Nebraska that brought in the amazing sights of Arch’s National park, had an impromptu trip to Nashville with two awesome ladies, enjoyed watching a friend win the world championship title, traveled with some of the best gals in town, watched my best friend receive her college degree and just made the choice to enjoy being alive.
There was so many events that happened in my life my 27th year that I can’t list them all. There was ups and there was downs. There was moments when I just needed a hug from one of my closest friends. There was moments that I felt like I had an elephant sitting on my chest because of the obstacle that was in front of either myself or a loved one. There was times that without that hug I feel like my world would’ve crumbled even more.
One thing I have learned this last year is that it isn’t always about the people you share blood with but it’s about the people who can watch you walk into a room and just by the way you say hi they know if you are ok or not. Or the friends that get the message that your dad is sick and within a few hours show up because they know you need them. Friends are such a big part of everyone’s life. They are the family that you choose. Normally the ones that know you better than your own family and some are the ones that have your back on the roughest days. I am so thankful to have the group of friends that I do. They definitely are my go to people and I know they have my back.
I learned is that it is absolutely ok to be single. This is something that I learned a while ago but the older I get the more I realize just how ok it is. I have learned that I am independent almost to a fault, I am passionate about life and the people who are in it, I am loyal almost to a fault and I am ok on my own to be a strong independent woman. So until the right one comes along I am just going to enjoy being single because this girl is in no rush.
I learned that in life you are going to come across some people who you just aren’t a fan of. But that it is ok because everyone is different. Everyone is here for a reason. Everyone has their own views and beliefs and that is fine. If we were all alike it would be such a boring world.
But one thing that I have also seen a lot the last year that saddens me is that people judge others by the color of their skin, who they love and what they believe without even knowing the person that is inside. I am one of those people who truly loves to learn about others and who they are on the inside. I truly believe that the color of the skin, beliefs and who they love don’t make up the whole person. It is just a part of them.
I wish the world didn’t judge so quickly and look down upon others just for those reasons. I wish that people took the time to say hi to the random stranger or the person that looks like their day just sucks. I wish that people would just learn to get a long and be ok with the fact that we are all different but just because you are different doesn’t mean you are a bad person. Your actions prove that but it’s not your skin color, beliefs or who you love. At least to me your actions prove more to me then anything.
27 was a year to remember. A year that I am happy to have behind me and a year that I am thankful that I got to enjoy. Did it have hardships? Yes. Did it have days where I felt lonely? Yes. Did it bring along the loss of a friend? Yes. But even with the obstacles it brought me I wouldn’t change a day. Because everyday that I was able to do what I love is and was a good day.
28 has officially arrived and I am ready to hit it head on. I am ready to spend more time with loved one, I am ready to travel more and I am ready to take it head on. Here is to 20 something!
The third weekend in May brought the Redding Rodeo. Shi, Alecia and I with a group of Shi’s friends went out and enjoyed the rodeo. You never know who you are going to run into at rodeo. For the first time in a long time we actually called it early and went home to get some sleep. Even calling it early it was a good time.
I wasn’t planning on attending the banquet since it was Maranda’s graduation but after texting with the ag teacher it was apparent that I needed to be there. Little did I know I would be awarded the FFA Pride award. FFA was a huge part of my life in high school and I still continue to spend time and volunteer time to the Red Bluff FFA. Receiving the award was a huge honor to me.
Liz's Gypsy Journey 