Saturday, February 21, 2009

Traveling Life's Road Together

Today was a busy day. I woke up at 5:00 to get ready before leaving for College Station with my family and some friends to attend Texas A&M's open house "Aggieland."
After a bit of a late start, we set off, my family in one car, my friend's mom and fiancee in another, and the three of us guys in another.

The morning passed fairly quickly after taking a "tour" of one of the dorms and listening to the assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts in a question and answer session.

Lunch was... underwhelming. While the lady in charge of the food services was extremely helpful, showcasing the famous Aggie friendliness to the people in line, I have to say that I was rather nonplussed with the sweet and sour pork and fried rice. It wasn't bad, really, but Panda Express- cheap, Americanized-Chinese food that it is- tastes better. Interestingly, my fortune said: "A good friendship is worth more than a passionate romance."

I say interestingly because even though our parents accompanied us on the way to College Station, we three amigos made our own way back to Austin, free from the stifling presence of our families to get to know each other better as friends.

We ended up making a fairly large circuit in the middle of east-central Texas before getting our bearings straight, but it was more fun than frustrating because it gave us more time together and the opportunity to find our own way. Such a shared experience lent itself to our feeling of independence and camaraderie as young men about to set out on our own-- yet together-- in life, starting with this "roadtrip."

Throughout the 2+ hour drive back home, we talked about a lot of different things, mostly about people we know and our plans for college, and it turned out to be an enjoyable time spent together, especially our dinner at McDonald's when we talked about religion and our high school. After this stop, I took the wheel, which was an unusual feeling because of the trust I felt from my friend's mom (the owner of the vehicle) as well as my friends themselves at asking me to drive.

Now, I would consider these two guys as my friends, but up until now in the most distant meaning of the word. They've been my classmates since 6th grade, but they have known each other their whole lives and are practically like brothers. However, at this point, I felt the most welcomed into the circle I have ever felt.

I have to note that I am normally a very reserved person, and most of the time, I do not relate much to my classmates. I know more people I would call acquaintances than friends, and it is difficult for me to build rapport with people my own age.

That said, this trip was special because I felt a new sense of acceptance and belonging from two people I have always wanted to know better. We had the most open and honest discussion between the three of us I can ever remember, and the entire experience drew us closer together as friends who are entering into the daunting, uncharted new waters of adulthood, but who have each other for strength.

It is the rare, and surprising, times like these that I am glad to say that I have been blessed with good friends, and I'm very thankful for our experience today. I hope that this is the start of a new, deeper relationship between us, and I'm excited and grateful to have two such people with me as I start a new chapter of life.