Before the summer ended, mom and I decided to take one last trip to North Carolina to visit my grandparents. We had gone once already this summer but it's always refreshing to get out of town and go see those you love. Their adorable house welcomed us after the four-hour drive on Friday.
My favorite part of arriving in Wilson is always the smell of pines and the cooler breeze after a thunderstorm. It doesn't rain much in the summer there but it surely did right before we came. My papa said he prayed for the heavens to open and pour buckets over their city. Who knows whether that was a coincidence or not, but everyone was happy.
We got there, received our many hugs, and one of the first things I did after that was get out my film camera. I had been wanting to use it all summer but never did until last week. I think it's always more exciting to photograph in a place you don't visit often. There's more to be creative with. So as I packed up my things at home before we left, I decided I would only take my film camera so I'd be forced to use it.
The next day we tried to visit my great aunt but because of even more torrential rain, we had to turn around. There were plenty of road blocks causing you to detour and the flooding was quite severe for just a day of rain. And trust me, driving in rain that's pounding on your windshield so hard that you cannot see three feet in front of you in not as thrilling as it may sound.
We eventually made our way over to her apartment for a chat after the rain stopped. We stayed, talked politics, laughed, and got up to leave a few hours later. The funny part is that it took us another hour to get from her front door to our car because on our way out, we saw many of my great aunt Peggy's new friends. She's been in this apartment for a few months now, due to her house being destroyed in a tornado, and it was just plain hilarious seeing all these characters in her life. Every single person is so different and makes life worth living -- at least for her anyway. We were talking kind of loud out on the porch and one of her neighbors popped out of her door in her nightgown, looking unhappy. Peggy defensively said, "Oh no! Geraldine, did we wake you up?" Geraldine then jokingly replied in her southern accent, "Yeah, you woke me up." The fact that it was around 5 p.m. made it all the greater. Mom and I chuckled and wished someone could write a comical story of what goes on in those apartments. We finally got out of there when we had officially met just about everyone taking up residence at Briarcliff Apartments.
My favorite part of arriving in Wilson is always the smell of pines and the cooler breeze after a thunderstorm. It doesn't rain much in the summer there but it surely did right before we came. My papa said he prayed for the heavens to open and pour buckets over their city. Who knows whether that was a coincidence or not, but everyone was happy.
We got there, received our many hugs, and one of the first things I did after that was get out my film camera. I had been wanting to use it all summer but never did until last week. I think it's always more exciting to photograph in a place you don't visit often. There's more to be creative with. So as I packed up my things at home before we left, I decided I would only take my film camera so I'd be forced to use it.
The next day we tried to visit my great aunt but because of even more torrential rain, we had to turn around. There were plenty of road blocks causing you to detour and the flooding was quite severe for just a day of rain. And trust me, driving in rain that's pounding on your windshield so hard that you cannot see three feet in front of you in not as thrilling as it may sound.
We eventually made our way over to her apartment for a chat after the rain stopped. We stayed, talked politics, laughed, and got up to leave a few hours later. The funny part is that it took us another hour to get from her front door to our car because on our way out, we saw many of my great aunt Peggy's new friends. She's been in this apartment for a few months now, due to her house being destroyed in a tornado, and it was just plain hilarious seeing all these characters in her life. Every single person is so different and makes life worth living -- at least for her anyway. We were talking kind of loud out on the porch and one of her neighbors popped out of her door in her nightgown, looking unhappy. Peggy defensively said, "Oh no! Geraldine, did we wake you up?" Geraldine then jokingly replied in her southern accent, "Yeah, you woke me up." The fact that it was around 5 p.m. made it all the greater. Mom and I chuckled and wished someone could write a comical story of what goes on in those apartments. We finally got out of there when we had officially met just about everyone taking up residence at Briarcliff Apartments.
After spending time talking in the
sunroom back at my grandparents', after messing up my grandparents'
brand new flat-screen t.v. (and frantically trying to fix it before my grandpa woke up), after
eating a lovely meal, after knitting a scarf, after listening to my
papa's stories, after riding around town looking at gorgeous cottages,
and after getting a free venti frappuccino at Starbucks, we headed home
to what was reality for me: school.
Although saddened by the fact that I had
to wake up early today and start my senior year, I still tried to stay
positive and think of all the great opportunities ahead of me.
The first day of my senior year was as laid-back as it could've been but I'm glad I can put those little first-day jitters behind me. Hope everyone else has a great first day of school, whether you started last week, today, or you start next week! :)
The first day of my senior year was as laid-back as it could've been but I'm glad I can put those little first-day jitters behind me. Hope everyone else has a great first day of school, whether you started last week, today, or you start next week! :)
Glad you had a good first day! And sounds like a fun vacation! :)
ReplyDeleteI bet you had a very memorable time :D
ReplyDeleteWida
Missing Amsie Blog