15 Days

The last few days in Illinois flew by; I couldn't be more grateful for the time that I spent with Kelly and his family and his best friends. He has been blessed to be surrounded by amazing people who love him to death.

We spent the last Friday of the trip with family; Kelly took his dad to work and I went to lunch with his little sister and his dad's girlfriend and then watched TV his grandmother that evening. On the last day, Kelly had his friends, Colton and Kenney, come by in the morning while so he could give them proper goodbyes. Then 10:30 rolled around and it was time to head out to the airport. We got to Bloomington, checked our bags and had about fifteen minutes to sit and talk with his dad for the last time. We soon said our goodbyes, went trhough security, found our gate and immediately boarded the plane to Atlanta. It was difficult for everyone, especially Kelly's father, to watch him leave for the last time before he enters basic training; you could read it in everyone's eyes that they didn't want to let him go.

Both the flight to Atlanta and the incredibly long flight home to Denver were, in a word, turbulent. We did make it safely to Denver and then went on a seemingly endless escapade to get home. Kelly's mom had arranged a Super Shuttle to pick us up and the instructions we had been given were wrong. We eventually figured out where we needed to go, what we needed to get and where to wait for the next shuttle to Fort Collins. It took over and hour to get home, and once we did, we had to soon hop in Kelly's van and drive over to my house so I could drop off my suitcase and get hiking clothes for the next morning.

All too soon it was 6:12 in the morning. After only seven hours of sleep we dressed, ate breakfast and piled in to go up to St. Mary's Glacier for a beautiful morning hike. It was a great hike and the view was breath-taking. I have since come home and fully unpacked from Illinois, printed out the flight itineraries for the upcoming trip to Washington and found the font I want my tattoo to be in. It's surreal; I turn 18 tomorrow. Being away so close to my birthday has delayed my realization that I am soon to be considered an adult in the eyes of the world for the rest of my life.

...I'm sure it will hit me tomorrow when I'm wondering "why on earth am I up at six".