The beginning

I woke up this morning thinking that 363 days ago my life changed for good. Kind of wierd, how one moment can change everything. I think there are probably very few instances in life where you can point how major life changes. Usually they are expected and a natural part of growing up- going to the first day of school, graduating from high school, moving into your first apartment, getting your first job. For me, the July 4, 2004 was one of those moments, although I never realized it at the time. It was just another holiday, another weekend visiting my bestfriend at the beach. We watched the fireworks, ate shrimp and crablegs at a table on the dockside in Destin, drank too many beminis and danced for hours. Then I saw him. A tall guy weaving his way through the crowd. I looked at him. He looked at me. We smiled. 11 months, 29 days, and 11 hours later, I'm a completely different person, and largely because of him. Before that instance, I was on a comfortable, expected path, a six year relationship that seemed perfect for marriage, but somehow I knew something wasn't right. I never expected anything to happen between me and the guy at the beach, and it didn't, not at least for a long time after I had ended the marathon relationship. Things were great with Mr. July, for a while. He helped me learn to live life on my own, to be independent, and helped me make important decisions about my job and what I want in life. Of course, Mr. July didn't last 365 days. But, he's still around, always a phone call away, always ready to listen about my adventures. He doesn't know how much he's affected me. People come in and out of your life, and I guess you never really grasp how much they've done until they are gone.