Our Story, Part I

Two years ago I embarked on an exciting journey.

It was one of those times in life where I didn’t know what to expect, how to react, or who to be. I was pushed harder than I ever have been at any point in my life—mentally and physically I didn’t think I would make it at times.

I made some wonderful friends at school that year. They not only became my only social interaction, but we grew so close they started to feel like my family too. Too many nights we were kicked out of the library and forced to relocate to Denny’s, and often in the morning I drove in the dark to meet my groupies.

Bridger quickly became my fellow rock climber,

Camille my friend with INCREDIBLE music taste and a crazy sense of adventure,

Brian with miles of young, naive freshman standing in line (and all of his accompanying drama), and

Jared… he was sort of the unknown.

We all slowly learned more about him as time passed. When Halloween came, he sported a Hitler mustache. On the weekends, he rocked out to local bands at off-the-wall venues. And intramural sports came far above school on his list of priorities.

Now looking back, I couldn’t be more grateful for my “junior core” experience. I learned so much about team work, patience, work/life balance, hard work, and friendship. And even better, I fell in love with the man of my dreams. I left school that year a different person, gratefully.

I love reflecting back on my junior core experience with Jared—
all the nights we spent watching movies until the wee hours in the early morning,
our campout on the roof of his house,
endless, endless and did I mention endless texting… EVERYTHING.