Firsts

I love first times, don't you? I've been thinking about Christmas, and how it was more exciting when I was a child, and I would wait up at night because who can sleep while they wait for Santa to come down the chimney? I think I convinced myself that heard his sleigh land on the roof and the bells jingling on his reindeer. Christmas was magical.

And firsts are sort of magical that way, don't you think? I remember the first time I got to fly. I was nineteen! So our family trips didn't include flying anywhere because who can afford tickets for seven children? Anyway, I was terrified and excited and really just so nervous since I was going by myself on the first leg of the journey, and I did not have one little clue about what to do or where to go, but when that plane took off! Wow. You just don't know what power is until you feel yourself being hurtled up into the air like that. Not to mention in was my first trip to the East where I got to see Boston, New York and D.C. all in one trip. And I'm pretty sure that trip changed my life because I just knew I wanted to live there. And I did!

I remember my first kiss and how nervous I was because I totally knew it was going to come, and I had waited for what seemed like an eternity for David Gallman to just get it over with and kiss me already. I was eighteen when that happened. What can I say? I'm a late bloomer, I suppose.

I also remember the first real teaching gig I landed. And the air conditioning was out at Annandale High School and I was wearing my brown a-line skirt from the BR with a white, button-down. I can still feel the way the sweat was trickling down my back and how I was sure I would be so nervous but when I stood up, I didn't feel any different than I did on any other day. It was so natural to be a teacher.

I remember that I wanted and wanted to go to Europe my whole life, and then I got to go, and I can still see us all piling into the Yukon, Dawn driving up to the house with all of her things right on time which was so not like my Dawn-O. I remember almost passing out when we got off the plane because I hadn't slept at all and was feeling the need for fresh air and my mom and Dawn had to grab me before I fell down. But man oh man, was England the greatest! Seeing a real live castle for the first time, crossing a moat to get inside, seeing it in all it's ruined glory. The green fields...London...the train to Edinburgh, Scotland!!! It was like my grown-up Christmas.

And I could go on forever about all those things that happen for the first time in my life and how perfect, exciting, scary and wonderful they are. And it makes me want more firsts in my life. I want to feel that excitement about something that I felt when I was small, and Christmas came around and I was sure that Santa was in by the tree, laying out all the presents and filling up all the stockings.