Sunday, January 11, 2015

Two Thousand Fourteen

So much happened in 2014 that I wasn't expecting. There was a lot of change, a lot of adventure, and a lot of growing up. I conquered my first half marathon, started my next documentary, transitioned into a new job, and fell in love. And even though it wasn't an easy year, it is safe to say that tradition continues and it was the best year of my life so far. 

In April, Eric and I ran a half marathon together. I can only describe the feeling as euphoric. I jogged through the rain and lighting, and cramped up the last quarter of a mile. But as I crossed the finish line, I could see Eric and my dad waiting for me. Eric had already drank a whole carton of chocolate milk and enjoyed his post-race chicken sandwich. I'm not fast, but I made it. I gave my dad a hug and then I cried in Eric's arms. It's a place I'd never thought I'd be, but there I was.






















We started our next documentary, Break the Rock. Production has started slowly, but still we've worked a lot of nights and weekends as we've begun the process all over again. It is exciting and challenging. Finding and developing this story, is perhaps my greatest challenge to date. It is a long road ahead, but it's just the type of adventure and work I need in my life to keep me motivated.





















During the summer, my role at work changed. I had to say goodbye to a really important part of my life, my first real job that had taught me so much about myself. I greatly miss Ann and the students I worked with every day.  But it was time I suppose and an opportunity I couldn't pass up. I was scared. I was put in a position that has pushed me over my limits.They were limitations I set for myself. I never thought I'd be the person who could survive or thrive in a job like this. It is constantly changing and evolving and quite honestly, uses all my brain power. Naps. I need more naps in my life because of it, but unfortunately have no time for them. 

Eric joined our office in the summer as well. We work side-by-side (no exaggeration...we share an office), and we work hard to make sure we don't kill each other. So far, so good. I've had to work a lot more closely with my dad in this new position, and while it has presented it's own set of challenges, it has been incredible to watch and learn from him what has made him so successful (a pure devotion to innovation, hard work, and the people who can put it all together...if you're wondering).


So, 2014 brought on a lot more work, but I somehow managed to squeeze every drop out of every second of this year. I found some time to meet up with old friends and time to develop new relationships with new friends. I witnessed a lot of nuptials, celebrated a lot of love, and explored Kansas City with people I care about most.









At 12:01 A.M. on January 1st, 2014 I texted my best friend. "It has been a crazy year. I hope this one is even better. Happy New Year!"

He texted me back at 12:04.  There I was, at 26 years old, anxious for a text back from a man that I've called my best friend for the better portion of a decade. He wasn't really a man when I met him though. We were kids, pretty fresh out of high school, trying to figure out just what the heck we were supposed to be doing with our lives.

We were kids when we met a few days before my first day of college at Northwest. We were kids, sitting in my dad's driveway until early morning,talking about life and love and happiness.  We were kids, sitting around filling out myspace surveys and watching youtube videos about how to properly tie a tie. We were kids when we tried to run the campus television station together. We were kids when we started our little production company when we graduated college. Then he bought a house, I got a real job, we made a documentary, I found myself. And all of a sudden we weren't kids anymore. We were adults, taking on life and facing adult challenges like actual human beings as the best of friends. But here I was at midnight on New Year's day, feeling like a kid again. Like, full on Taylor Swift-at-sixteen level of kid. 

I kind of panicked, realizing that I'm in fact, an adult and need to approach life as such. But I panicked more thinking about the all the love I had for him and all the things I all of a sudden wanted to tell him, all the things I NEEDED to say. So, I did what I do best. I word vomited every ounce of my soul into a less-than-eloquent speech that can only be rivaled by such other great oral presenters such as Abraham Lincoln, or Martin Luther King Jr.,..or Kanye. More toward the latter. 

We didn't fall in love at first sight, and our mutual realization that maybe what we've always wanted and needed was each other wasn't something we were going to just run with. A lot was at stake, a decade of friendship that neither of us wanted to sacrifice. But what it started was an incredible year of adventure, getting to know each other all over again. I'll save all the things I've learned about him, and myself, and us for a different blog, but it has been an incredible journey thus far.

Maybe it hasn't been perfect. I doubt things ever are. But it HAS been my type of perfect and I can honestly say that I absolutely can not wait to see what's in store on this road that I am traveling with my best friend. Somewhere along the lines, we fell in love and that has made this year...pretty much perfect.

I hope 2015 has plenty of adventures in store for us, my friends and family, and all the people I'll meet in this year to come.

Cheers!