From Moments to Memories

Rebirth

Outside, it was a crisp fifty-four degrees, and rain collided against the window in her bedroom in a torrential downpour, the rhythmic sound welcoming a stillness in her mind. With nothing better to do, she decided to clean her room, which was, admittedly, a total mess. Although she fully intended to sort through her clothes, wash her bedding, and vacuum the floors, she came across an old, tattered Converse shoe box filled to the brim with photos and notes from years ago.

Feeling nostalgic, she sat in the center of her bedroom floor sorting through photos, comforted by the soft fabric of her favorite sweatshirt. Several minutes passed, and she came across a series of pictures of her and her best friend, where they were, not to her surprise, having reckless, teenage fun. As the sound of the rain quieted, she remembered how eager the two of them had been to graduate, to be done with high school, and to move on to the next chapter of their lives. The kind of trouble they caused was never the type that would hurt anyone, and it was done out of a certain restlessness, a sense of urgency to grow up. And although the days of sneaking liquor into the bathroom at homecoming and sneaking out of their fifth-period history class were long behind them, their friendship remained.

The secrets they shared, the boys they chased, and the memories they made were precisely what helped shape her into the person she was today, and she realized this, overwhelmed by an unidentifiable emotion. Getting older meant spending less time together, seeing as she attended college in their home state, while her best friend ventured off to Tennessee for her degree. Nevertheless, their friendship stood the test of time, and whenever they stayed up late sharing stories on the phone, it felt as though they'd never been apart.

Moments that were seemingly insignificant to her before had soon become her most cherished memories. Perhaps it just took actually growing up to realize just how meaningful those laugh-until-you-cry moments were. There were times that she couldn't help but find herself missing the days when her best friend was always by her side, convincing her to go on yet another unpredictable adventure.

Today was one of those days.

With the thought of cleaning her room long forgotten, she reached for her phone and was suddenly startled by the blaring ringtone. Her best friend's contact appeared on the screen, illuminating her face, and she answered the call with a smile.

" I was actually just about to call you, " she said, " I was cleaning my room and found our old box of pictures. "

Rainy days call for reminiscing, " her friend replied. " Want some company? " power of our minds. The “222” we may see every day at exactly 2:22 pm will unfortunately not bring us eternal happiness. Sometimes, what we think gives us energy is not as powerful as it may seem at the moment. When we notice our angel numbers in a random place it may feel like the universe is communicating with us, but it can also be a facade and a manipulation of the mind. Sometimes, it is coincidental or even our circadian rhythm that forces us to turn our heads at the same time every day. It is better to associate symbols of luck with happiness than actual luck. Manifestation is as powerful as what we physically do. No number, symbol, or superstition will magically make us be the people we wish to be. We attract what we put into the world, not what a charm does for us. It is up to us, the physical mind and body, to create ourselves into the versions our “lucky charms” wish to.

The two of them talked on the phone for hours, gossiping, reliving the time her parents caught them " borrowing " from the liquor cabinet and sneaking out to go to a party, and simply enjoying each others' company.

She soon realized that maybe growing up and getting older wasn't so bad after all, especially not if you had a best friend to navigate such an experience with.