4th of july festivities.

as i've mentioned, my holiday weekend was spent with some of my old aloha friends. these wonderful girls played such a huge role in my final years as a camper, and my early years as a counselor. we were a pack, supporting each other through many of the challenges a girl might face between the ages of 15 to 20. they were my summer support network, and we carried summer into the rest of each year through lengthy email chains and annual new years gatherings. after college, we scattered across the country, and the news years reunions simply weren't feasible. so, after ringing in 5 years apart, we finally managed to reunite for a different holiday- the 4th of july. it was like we were quickly transported back to our younger days, carrying on nostalgic conversations and sharing funny memories. during my late teen-early 20s years, my friendships were largely made up of small "teams" or packs of friends, many of which even had names... Quints (these girls), Five Alive (high school), TA8 (college), and many others. my relationships with each person depended in many ways on the larger group energy and dynamic-- it was as though the friendship was truly based on each of the group members united together. in my years since, the friendships i have made have focused on have been much more individual. sure, many have been part of a larger group, but in an entirely different way. my point here is that being reunited with such a core group was so interesting. our dynamic was just the same-- despite years apart and a wide variety of experiences, we were all back together with the very same group relationship. 

so. we enjoyed our old haunts in hanover-- dinner at molly's, lying on the quad, relaxing on t's porch. we cooked tasty food and told stories and remembered moments past. we tried some delicious new food-- nationally known gelato and yummy breakfast.  we went to fairlee for the parade, and returned later for the traditional bonfire & fireworks. i saw many old familiar faces but wasn't really able to catch up with the ones i wanted to-- i felt at home, yet entirely removed. it's strange to have spent 4 summers away from aloha, and to now only be one hour away but living such a different life. 

overall, we all had a grand, though packed, weekend. we're hoping the next time we reunite might be out in california, where the farthest quint just got herself a great new job!