Friday was one of the best days of my college life thus far. I have had one of the most stressful and busy past two weeks—filled with tests, meetings, early mornings, lack of sleep, and tons of studying. On Friday, I had my last of five tests and I was in dire need of some social time spent with some of my closest friends. Late Thursday night, Demi Dollihite invited me and a few others to spend the day at her grandparent’s lake house in Lake Conroe. It was spontaneous and very last minute, but saying “yes” was one of the greatest decisions I’ve made in a while. We loaded up in two cars around 12:30pm and headed off to the lake. There is nothing better than spending the day on the lake with some of your best friends. Road Tripping was half the fun and according to Marcos everything we did was “SO COLLEGE!” Her grandparents welcomed us to their home and we quickly changed into our bathing suits. Their house was perfectly situated on the lake and we couldn’t have asked for better weather. Her grandfather drove us around in their boat and he was one of the funniest old men I’ve ever met. We used double tubes and flew around that lake like it was nobody’s business. I’ve never had so much fun tubing before!! It was a lot of people’s first time out there and I am so glad I could be a part of their memorable experience. We took hundreds of pictures and relaxed out on the lake all day. In the midst of this exciting day, I had a moment on the boat. I was sitting in the front area of the boat with it traveling very high speed along the lake. The wind was blowing my hair and my eyes were sealed shut. It is so easy to get caught up in the stresses of this life and lose sight of what is truly important. I worry more about my grades and classes, and sometimes overlook the more important things like friendships and faith. This trip was the perfect reminder for me. It showed me of how blessed I am to have such incredible people surrounding me that constantly challenge me to become a better person. It also reminded me how little time we have left in our freshmen year of college. I want to live in every moment and appreciate the opportunities I’ve been given. The day continued to get better and better as it went on. We goofed around, played Frisbee, tossed the football, snacked on pretzels, and took more pictures. Even though our boating equipment continued to break and deflate, we passed through several obstacles. On the second round out on the boat, we had a new tube and a set of skis. Several of my friends got up on the skis and they were rockin’ and rollin’. As the day began winding down, we headed back to the house and sat on their patio singing songs and hanging out. Demi’s sweet grandparents cooked us a homemade dinner and ate alongside us out by the lake. It was an absolutely delicious meal with a great group of friends. After dinner, we continued listening to Brett and Marcos sing as we roasted some marshmallows for our S’morz. We headed out to the dock for some “dock time” filled with music, deep conversations, and memories that will last a lifetime. We sat out there for hours and this was by far my favorite part of the day. The seven of us bonded in a unique way and I couldn’t be more thankful for each and every person that came on this day-trip. We laughed, we cried, we sang, we played, we joked, we swam… we basically did it all. This was my favorite Friday of my college experience. I won’t give up on the friendships I’ve made this year and I know I am gonna miss this more than anything. Before driving back, we stood together in a unified hug and discussed our favorite parts of the day. We arrived back in College Station late into the night and had a movie night at the villas. I cannot say thank you enough to Demi for being so sweet to invite us to her grandparents’ house for the day. This day was absolutely perfect in every way. I am obsessed with these pictures, these memories, and these incredible people. Words do not do this day justice… It was just “so college.”
