on april 16th,

i flew to the

island of oahu

with madeline.

we were there to

celebrate the wedding of

one of 

liz’s

best friends in

the whole wide world,

maleeda.

all of her best

friends from college

were there.

i was honored to

be invited,

but i anticipated it

being a tough trip.

we arrived and i

was instantly transported

back in time.

i had been

here before.

we

had been here before.

shit. 

now…

i knew

that i had taken

five trips to 

hawaii with

liz, 

but i can never

remember which

island is which, 

and i was unsure 

that i had ever

been to this one, 

that is,

until i hit 

that baggage claim area. 

it was a few 

years ago.

liz

was working on oahu,

and instead of

flying home to

see me for my birthday,

she flew me to

her. 

maddy and i

jumped in a cab

and the memories

continued to kick

me in the stomach. 

i remembered the highway,

i remembered the street

lined with high-end shops.

i remembered the 

hotels along the beach.

and as we pulled

into the driveway

of the hotel i had

chosen online, 

i looked across the

street and 

saw the hotel

we

stayed in all

of those years ago.

fuck. 

maddy and i went up

to our room.

a corner room, 

looking out at that 

other hotel

from my past.

i remember us standing

on the balcony

of that hotel,

i even have

two photos

of the moment, 

but i won’t share them.

liz’s

eyes were closed

in both of them

(this was in my pre-digital slr camera days so my timing often sucked)

and i can just

hear her telling

me to delete the photos.