The Definition of Me

Moments that have helped define who I am:

1. My parents getting  divorced


2. Traveling to London in high school and being met there by my grandmother, brother, and father


3. Living with my mom before my brother moved back home


4. Being named color guard captain in high school


5. Dating someone who was always late or often times stood me up


6. My grandmother being diagnosed with Lou Gerhig’s Disease


7. Dating a boy who, upon hearing how distraught I was over the above news, came over and drove me an hour and a half home in order to reassure me that everything was fine.  This is the same boy who taught me that my time was worth just as much as his.  He called me princess and meant it.


8. Living with Anne and Kim


9. Spring Break with Gina for seven years


10. Dating someone who adored me too much


11. The death of my grandmother


12. Having my boyfriend, who I knew was going to break up with me, cheat on me with the person who was one of my best friends for the past 10 years…four months after the death of my grandmother (talk about a major depression) and they flaunted it in front of me


13. Living in London for six weeks the summer after my grandmother died- it taught me what true friendship was and how to love myself because I was me


14. Meeting Chris and knowing everyone else was just practice


15. Moving in with my dad, new step-mom, and step-sisters at 22 because I graduated college and had no job


16. Getting that first job


17. Chris’ parents getting divorced


18. Moving out of my dad’s and into my first apartment on my own


19. Deciding to become a teacher


20. 9-11


21. My teaching internship year (including the gall bladder problems and finding a middle ground with my step-mom)


22. My mom moving to NC


23. Flying to Raleigh, interviewing, and getting a job all in less than five hours.


24. Having to call Chris the day I got hired (the day after his birthday) to tell him I got the job and we’d be moving to NC


25. The first year I woke up on Dec. 19 and didn’t automatically know it was the anniversary of my grandma’s death


26. Finally living in the same city and apartment as Chris and being able to call it home together