This woman. . . Lifelong friend/sister. . .my very first and longest running friend in this world, minus the running lol. She is probably the strongest driving force that I have had to move forward with this “blog” experiment. Followed very closely by my husband, who purchased the domain for me in the first place.
Aly and I grew up together in a very sporadic sense of the phrase. Our mother’s met working at the same vet clinic, her aunt baby-sat both of us, we were near inseparable for many years. A specific memory of the two of us as very small children: Aunt Carol was walking the two of us to a Nature Park that was nearby her apartment in Ocala, Fl. I remember, far too vividly I might add, that on this day, the two of us were wearing the same outfit in varying colors. Neither of us were the most petite of little girls. These dreadful outfits, that we no-doubt adored back then, consisted of a large, childish floral printed top and solid shorts that coordinated perfectly with the base color of the top. The entire outfit was T-shirt material. One of us was in a dark purple and the other in a bright blue color that was somewhere between robin’s egg and cerulean. You could probably see the two of us butterball children coming from a mile in either direction. We also had a “Fortress” in the “Enchanted Forest” just behind Aunt Carol’s apartment. We later learned, in our adult years, that the “Enchanted Forest,” was never more than an about six foot deep thicket of brush and trees separating the apartment complex from the road on the other side. The mind of a child.
Anyway, we continued on to the same elementary school, Wyomina Park, for kindergarten. Within the next year or so Aly moved to Hungary with her Mother. We didn’t see or speak to one another for many years after that. We had almost forgotten each other altogether. In the sixth grade, we had found ourselves at Ft. King Middle School. Aly, or Alyshia, and myself shared a very awkward exchange in the hallway between classes one day, learned the other’s name from separate sources, gone home and asked our mother’s why this person we met in the hallway was so familiar. Low and behold, we were filled in on our past and once again became inseparable. Again, the summer after eighth grade, the time came for Alyshia to move away, this time with her Father and Step-Mother. This time to Tomball, Tx. Throughout high school we were not very good long distance friends. It is understandable looking back, we were growing into adults in completely different environments. Occasionally, Alyshia would come back to Florida and spend some time with Aunt Carol in Orange Park, Fl. Those were the only real interactions we had through those years. My Grandmother lived in St. Augustine, Fl and would allow me to borrow her car to go visit with my lifelong friend. My Grandmother is an incredible woman!
After high school, things didn’t really change a whole lot through 2010. I was living in St. Augustine with my Grandmother and the second in command at the 312 Pizza Hut during its opening in 2009. Due to unfortunate circumstance, Alyshia had come to visit Aunt Carol and requested to come stay with me for a week. Gramma and I were happy to have her. I even gave her a job at Pizza Hut for two days. She twirled advertisement signs and learned the disgusting truth about prepping pan pizza dough. Ultimately she decided that pizza was not her thing. She went back to her home in Texas, but this time, we were adults who realized we enjoyed one another, so we kept in touch. Neither of us is really very good at the phone (me. really. I am TERRIBLE at calling or texting people.) Every time we spoke Alyshia would ask me when I was going to move to Texas to be closer to her. We had gotten close again and neither of us wanted to let go. I was so much in love with Florida though. I love everything about Florida. Most of all, my family, and the amazing natural experience. This continued until April of 2011, I had found myself in desperate need for a change in order to save myself from my own foul demise. I finally caved and said, “I will be there in two weeks.” I immediately gave Pizza Hut my two week notice, found a job at a Pizza Hut in Houston, told my family I was leaving, then packed up my 1999 Buick Century Custom, and left. I didn’t even inform all of my friends in Florida that I was leaving. (again, I am HORRIBLE at the phone!!!) I later had to deal with the repercussions of that choice, but I was on my way.
We have had ups and downs since my arrival in April of 2011. In 2012, Alyshia introduced me to my now husband and the father of my two amazing boys, Rion, 4, and Anton, <2. We have had fights, arguments, silent periods, fits of rage, and every single time, we realize that we don’t like being without the other’s love, support, shoulder to cry on, face to scream into, words of wisdom, house to crash at, silliness, drive, friendship, and appreciation. No matter what it has been in life that we have come to face, we have survived it one way or another and come out together on the other side. Our whole lives.
So, if Aly Sayes HaileyRocks!, I am going to run with it.
