A little back story for how I ended up on the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I used to live in Wisconsin at a camp. For an entire winter, I did life with about 10 other people. They are precious and dear to my life and happen to live all over the world now. Two of these people are John and Lauren. Because we all spent so much time together in Wisconsin, we now have this lasting friendship. So when Lauren suggested I take a trip to North Carolina someday, I decided that it would be a great way to spend some time this summer.
John, Lauren and their two boys currently live in Nags Head, North Carolina. My friend, Melissa and I started driving from Oklahoma, took a break in Nashville and drove east until we couldn't drive any longer. While in Nashville, we visited many coffee shops and had good conversation with friends of Melissa.
Whether you take a break or not, it is a crazy long way from Tulsa, Oklahoma to the edge of the United States. The last bridge we drove over literally felt like we were falling off the edge of the world. It seems, however, that the drive and craziness were well worth it. We have seen some amazing beauty and had some great quality time with lovely people.
I've known Melissa for years, but this has been a time for us to really get to know each other as confident adults and not crazy college students. It has been a sweet time of good conversation.We've spent the last few days enjoying life on the beach and exploring the Outer Banks. The beach is stunning and so relaxing. The weather is mild and the area is not crazily over-populated. It's always so hard for me to 'vacation' and just stop doing things (That's probably why I'm writing this). I have gotten to sit and stare at the ocean and listen to the waves. Everyone knows how fantastic a beach vacation is, but I'm really learning to enjoy the peace of these moments.
One of my favorite parts of this trip has been the conversations. John and Lauren are so enjoyable and we've done a lot of reminiscing about the craziness of our Wisconsin lives. Lauren said something this morning that really intrigued me. We were talking about memory and how we remember what we've lived through. She was referring to seeing pictures of her children and wondered what would happen when she was older. Would she still remember the moments those pictures were taken? I think that is a solid question because I have had so many experiences as an adult that I would never want to forget. I wonder what makes me remember them and if I will lose that ability. We've been reliving these stories of working in Wisconsin and those stories are still so real. They were seriously life-changing experiences for me and I want to never forget them. I cherish those times that I can sit and recollect with friends because when I don't remember, they will.
That's probably why God lets us live in community, not just because he loves community so much but because we live better and remember better when we are not alone. Stories are always better when they are told by all the people that lived them. I never want to stop telling stories.
