I remember driving from King’s Dominion with 4 of my good friends in college. It was a highlight of that year and one of the best theme parks I’d ever been to, lush and covered in beautiful trees.
We were tired and it was almost 2 in the morning. We were switching the driving between the people who claimed to be the least tired. I’m sure we were all equally exhausted.
We talked to keep the driver awake. Someone said, “So… Who’s going to get married first?”
We all laughed and started accusing each other of being first. Some of us were in relationships, and others weren’t. It was a fun moment and I remember thinking it would be one of the last times many of us would be together. Some of us were graduating soon, others would in a year or two after that.
I don’t remember who called it or won the bet. We all bet we got it right.
Either way, it fell out this way:
One of us went into graduate school, then teaching, and is dating a very nice girl today.
One of us went into medical school a year later, started dating a fellow student and got married within a year. Now, six years later, they have three kids.
Another of us went into graduate school, then teaching, then graduate school again, then Peace Corps, and is dating a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer.
One of us finished undergrad that next year, did an extra year to finish his masters and then got married to his sweetheart from college. They have a little girl.
One of us finished school, went into Peace Corps, met a very nice girl, got married two years later, went to grad school and is sitting here in Vermont writing this story.
If I could go back to that night, I’d not only win the bet but I would also remind myself that I was right. This was a special moment.
We get older and it’s harder and harder to stay in touch. We all get busy and the future unfolds in surprising ways.
I hope I can always stay awake to those moments and enjoy them.
