Tonight I celebrated my 10 reunion with my grad school class mates.  I laughed until I cried approximately 7 times.  It was glorious.  We talked a lot about our journey through undergraduate school.  We laughed about the time Morgen argued with me that you didn’t have to actually get a masters degree to become a speech pathologist.  We laughed about the time Dr. Highnam unbuttoned his shirt during class to reveal a t-shirt that said “Label Jars, Not People.”  We laughed until we hyperventilated about one of my favorite friends producing a list of words focusing on articulation for a college aged female.  (It was the least appropriate thing that happened in graduate school.)

We didn’t talk about the grades.  We didn’t talk about the finals, or our research projects, or our graduation.  We talked about getting lost.  We talked about the times we were late for class, the group projects that were flops, the ridiculous of it all.  And it made me think about where I am today.  I am lost.  I look forward and see the end goal.  The goal is to raise kind children.  The goal is to succeed in business.  The goal is to survive another day.

But I am lost.  Just wondering around looking for the right path.  Hoping someone shows up with a map – knowing they won’t.  I am so busy looking for the way out, I forget to look around.  I forget to enjoy the moments where Hank carefully sets up a pet shop, because I am too busy packing his lunch.  I forget to watch Gus dance because we are running late for every single thing.

I need to get lost with them.  I want to laugh really hard about these moments with them some day.  I want to remember all the good stuff.  We aren’t going to sit down some day and say “Remember when you finally stopped picking your nose in public?”  (Sadly – this is an end goal for us.)  But I will remember that every time I attempt to take a picture of those little stinkers they jab a chubby little finger up their nose.

Get lost.  Enjoy the journey.  Look around.  See the scenery.  Don’t miss the good stuff just because you are too focused on getting where you are going.  Getting lost will be the best part.