Pictures are Worth a Thousand Words

Aunt Lexa?

Yes Taren?

I found a picture inside the cabinet and I was wondering if you could tell me about it.

Of course sweetie! Oh my, that is your mother.

My mother? Auntie could you tell me about her and maybe a few stories?

Well Taren, I was going to wait to tell you about her until you were 18 but 16 seems okay I guess. Your mothers’ name was Brandee Dawn Holen, but liked to keep the last name silent whenever possible. Don’t get her wrong or anything, but she just didn’t get along with all of the other Holens’ that’s why you only have me and grandmas side of the family here for you, because she never wanted you to get into the things that her father’s side once did.  And as you know, your father passed away from cancer 2 months into your mothers’ pregnancy.

Your mother was a great lady Taren, she liked to help people and even when she was having hard times because she thought that if she could help someone else then her pain would fade away in the back ground and she wouldn’t have to deal with it. But eventually that caught up to her, when she had you she was the happiest person. But one day, everything just hit her at once and she couldn’t deal with all the sorrow and pain that she had kept to herself for so long and one day she drove and crashed into another car causing her to pass away instantaneously, but the others were okay and walked away with only a few injuries.

Before you were born, she made a will and made sure that I was the one that would get full custody of you. Which leads me to tell you this, I am not your real aunt sweetie, me and your mom were really good friends and did everything together. We had our ups and downs but always at the end of the day we made up and realized that just because we have differences doesn’t mean that were bad people. Once she wrote I was the legal guardian in her will, I knew that I would from then on out be your auntie.

So you’re telling me that I was lied to? I thought all of you said that she passed away from a drunk driver hitting her on the way home from work! And that grandma adopted you at age 3 and that does make you my real aunt! WHY LIE?

Taren, calm down, we said all of those things to protect you from getting hurt. This doesn’t make any difference between us; you will always be my sweet little niece even if it is not biological.

I guess I understand why you guys said what you said. Can you tell me one story about you and her?

Well, we were not that great of an influence for little kids to look up to. We had fun and lived our teen years doing stuff that we should not have like partying. But one time sticks out to me more than anything; it was the time we stayed at grandma’s house without anyone there.  We decided that at 1 A.M we would sneak to the gas station to go get drinks and we left a couple of our good friends back at the house so we didn’t make too much noise.  To get out without the neighbors seeing we drove down the street with no headlights on because we were afraid that they would shine in windows. Once we got to the gas station we got everyone drinks but got us mozzarella sticks, we ran inside the house and while everyone was getting there drinks we made the food and we both ate it because we didn’t want to share with anyone. This is the night that I will remember of us because it may not seem like a lot, but that was the night that me and your mother started becoming close. After that night we became so close that we just thought of each other as sisters.

Thank you aunt Lexa, you are such an amazing person for taking me in when she passed away and you have such a strong head on your shoulders. I love you so much. Even though I wish my mother was here, im glad that I have someone like you to watch over me and guide me through life. My mother made a fantastic decision choosing you as my guardian.

See Taren, you are just like her; you are good at making people feel better. You are an amazing young lady and your mother would be very proud of you if she was here right now. I love you sweet heart.

Memories Make Life Memorable

What’s a memory? Is it good or bad? Well, there are many different types of memories, but the ones that I like to remember are good memories. This is something that stays in your heart forever and you love to remember it and when you think about it you find yourself with a huge smile upon your face.

When I think of a memory, there is one that always seems to pop into my mind right away. It was the first time my mom had left me with my sisters so she could go to the store. But, I never got along with them when I was smaller so I decided that I was going to leave the house without them seeing me so I could go to the store to because I wanted fruit snacks and I didn’t know if my mom would remember to pick them up for me. So there I was, 7 years old and walking to the store by myself. I thought that I was the coolest person ever, then once I hit main street a cop spotted me and asked me where I was headed and once I told him he made me get into the back of the police car so that he could take me back home because I was obviously too young to be out and about by myself. Everyone thought this was horrible, but once he dropped me off he allowed me to see the whole vehicle and he even turned on the lights and sirens on so that I could see and hear them. So you see, this was something that I had always wished to do but never had the chance till that day. Even though I was not allowed to play with my dolls for a week because that was my punishment I would never take back that day for anything because even though it was wrong to leave the house I had finally fulfilled my dream to see that police car. That is why this was my favorite memory.

Even though a memory can be small and big doesn’t mean that it’s not special to someone. Thinking about their own memory could be the only thing putting a smile on their face every day. So remember, live for the moment because you never know if that one thing you’re doing can lead to one of the greatest memories of your life.

It’s A Dream That One Day Will Become Reality

Vacations aren’t something that is intended to be dreadful, they are supposed to be fun and a time where you can get away for a few days. They’re supposed to take away stress and give you a time of relaxation from the real world even if you don’t go somewhere spontaneous. But everyone has a dream vacation that they one day hope to go on. It may be big or it may be small but it’s a get away from life that needs to be fulfilled

Mine would be a warm place with palm trees and sand right next to an ocean. I could go there to clear my head and think wonderful thoughts and maybe even write and read a couple good books. But there is a lot more than just that, I could go to aquariums to see and discover all new variations of fish that I have never seen before in a small town in North Dakota. So even while taking a vacation I would still be learning new and interesting things. But every vacation needs a fun experience and I would like to learn to surf, even though it will take a lot of dedication, time, and money, I believe it would be worth it. It can teach me that even though I might fail a couple times I will need to get up and keep going to reach a goal that I have set for myself. I would also need to try something very out of the norm for me; I would probably choose to try a fresh coconut. Even though I don’t like fake coconut I feel as if I need to try a real one to see if they are any better even if they do look like a ball with fur on them. A vacation doesn’t just need to be relaxing; it needs to be fun as well because everything needs zest.

This is my dream vacation that I one day hope and pray to go on. Even if it doesn’t happen soon or in the near future, I will be fine with that but it will have to be in this life time. So don’t be afraid to go and experience new places and new adventures take the extra step to make your vacation a memorable one that will not only stay in your mind but also inside your heart.