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.