One's
mind is a complicated thing. The further I get into my current
Psychology class, the more I realize that. But I don’t need a textbook
to prove it. Today, my mind took over for a moment and suddenly things
were happening I had no control over.
Let me back up. Four days from today will be March 16th; a day that will forever have a different meaning for me. I’ve blogged about this before. On March 16th,
2003, one of my very best friends, Emett, was killed in a motorcycle
accident. This Friday will be NINE years since the day he died. Nine
years and one day since the last time I spoke to him. And I still miss him
terribly. He was the big brother I never had, even though Frankie did
his darndest to be that, he is still my little brother. He was a special
person in my life…and even though I have married the man of my dreams
and even though I have the most amazing best friends a girl could ask
for, there will always be a little place in my heart that won’t ever be
filled again. I think that happens when someone who was a GIANT part of
your life dies. I know I’ve felt that with my grandparents, too. Just like
this little part inside you changes forever.
But,
back to my mind. We have a new girl at work. Her name is Emily and she
is cute, young and petite. She is figuring things out around here pretty
quickly, so today, my boss was praising her for a job well done and she
yelled “Good job Li'l Em!” down the hallway. My body froze. All my
muscles tensed up. I think I stopped breathing. And before I even had a
chance to process what she’d said, there were tears running down my
cheeks. Emett’s family (and many of his coaches and friends) called him
“Li'l Em”. I have not heard those two words said together since he
died. And four days before March 16th, I hear them. I was
crying HARD, before I even realized what was going on. My mind heard
those words and before I could react on my own - my sub-conscious reacted
for me.
March 16th
is always a hard day for me. Those closest to me know that I’m a little
extra fragile that day. I feel sad in the days leading up to it…and
even sadder on the day itself. People say “it will get
easier”, and sometimes that’s true. But once a year, it hurts just as
much as the day it happened. I miss you Em.
This choked me up. I know I told you I saw him the day before he died, at the kiosk Great American Cookie stand in Vista Ridge Mall. My heart aches for you and his family and other close friends. It's good to know how huge of an impact he had on you; that's all any of us could ever hope for. You've done an amazing job living out his legacy, Rach.
ReplyDeleteWow. It's amazing how things like that can hit you like a ton of bricks. As painful as they are, I try to think of them as a lost loved one saying hello, or God reminding us that they're being cared for while we remember them here on Earth. Thanks so much for sharing this. I'll be praying for you these next few days, Rach!
ReplyDeleteThank you BOTH.
ReplyDeleteLinds, you know that your connection to Em is one of the many things that make me aware that we are connected on a Higher level.
Chelsea, thank you so much for your sweet words. And you are so right.