a first

Yesterday was the first first-day-of-school I didn't have.

It was weird thinking that Emily and so many of my friends in Provo were heading to class, receiving syllabi, and buying textbooks. It was even more weird thinking of the incoming freshmen, who just started their first day of college ever, who don't know their way around campus, and who are in awe about everything to do with BYU. And here I am, a BYU grad who knows all the routes through campus and all the tricks to buying textbooks moving on to the next stage in her life.

Nostalgia pulled at my heart a little bit, but then I looked around me. It's a cold, rainy day, and I spent all morning starting to unpack my kitchen--my kitchen--with so many wedding/bridal shower additions. I washed my new, soft, luxurious towels in the washer and dryer, which are in the apartment--my apartment (well, Josh's too, eventually). I sipped on cocoa in the middle of unpacking mess, listening to HP on my iPod dock. I had the windows open and smelled the fresh, rainy air. I even smiled a bit as I paid our first utility bills (though I can't promise I'll smile about that for long).

I'm a college grad who just had her first not-first-day-of-school and who, while she looks back on BYU with fond memories, wouldn't trade her place in life right now for anything.