What's a Resolution? Let's Relive Shall We?

As this year comes to a close I've been reliving all the memories I have made. Every time a new year starts I browse the usual social media sites and read the unsurprising new years resolutions that people supposedly commit to. "New Year! New me!"....that saying rarely goes unnoticed. While I sit back and watch my friends create their own written lists of goals they hope to check off later, I constantly remind myself that not acting on the goals you set is pointless. There seem to be some people in this world who only create a resolution to say they have one, but yes there are some who are devoted to every word they write on that sheet of paper, and I admire those. I, myself, am not one to write down goals, because I know they'll be forgotten in the next few days if not hours. I just continue to strive to be the best I can be and work to the best of my ability. My main goal: be happy.
And as this year does come to a close I have decided to relive some of my favorite and not so favorite memories on here with y'all.
1. senior year I had the best time being in a relationship with one of my best friends. His name was Samuel and we were together for about 9 months. It was a rocky relationship at times, but I learned a lot about myself during those 9 months: don't overreact; talk things out in person; never overuse the words "I love you"; both of us needed some growing up to do; smiling is the best form of medicine.
2. senior year involved multiple papers, presentations, and exams to guarantee our graduation and key to freedom. Our keys to freedom would not have been complete if we didn't have plans for the next year. BYU, Brigham Young University, you could say is my dream school and only school I had sights on. In February of my senior I got accepted. I'm not afraid to admit I texted my best friend Gibson in the middle of the night, not expecting him to still be awake, and him calling me and tell him how happy he was for me. I cried I was so happy, not gonna lie.
3. February 21, 2014: will forever be a day I live to remember not in the happiest of ways. That day was the day my soccer career was flushed down the toilet, hypothetically. But I was still crushed when I tore my ACL that night in the 3rd game of my senior season. I was devastated, but I think my dad was more upset then I was.
4. April 8, 2014: I had my ACL repair surgery. I wasn't exactly thrilled,because surgery scares me, but if I ever wanted to play soccer again it had to be done. I sound totally dramatic, but that's a trait people have said I have gained from playing such a sport (watch the Men's World Cup and see how dramatic they are and then you'll understand. The Women's World Cup, however, is a different story. We are more dramatic off the field then on). My surgery was early in the morning, and the rest of the day the anesthesia still affected me pretty good. My leg felt like it weighed a ton, but it didn't hurt, because the nurses gave me a femoral block to suppress the pain for about 12 hours, so of course right on  cue at 12 midnight the block wore off and pain flooded my leg like a fire flooding a house. It consumed me; I seriously thought that's how I was going to be the rest of my life: in pain and bed ridden, unable to walk or ever see my friends and family again (take note I was still heavily influenced by the anesthesia). This was obviously not one of my fondest memories.
5. May 29, 2014: I graduated from Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School. After 4 years of what seemed like never ending stress, I was finally free. Free to finally find a job and not worry about managing school with it. Free to finally stay out as late as I wanted and not worry about finishing 3 papers, and 2 projects all in one weekend. Free to finally sleep as late as I wanted. Free to finally enjoy a summer not filled with books that needed to be read and papers that needed to be completed by certain deadlines. I was finally free to be free.

LtoR: Jonathan, Genevieve, Alex, me, Gibson, Kelsey, Gabe, Morgan, Reisa, and Zach

LtoR: Amanda, Cami, Mom, me, Heather, Grandma, Dad

 6. Road trips with my group of friends to Cullman, Alabama for the weekend.
7. Samuel getting his mission call to Rancho Cucamonga, California. He reported to the Provo, Utah MTC on November 4, 2014.
8. August 6-7, 2014: I helped Gibson pack for Bama, and throughout the summer we spent as much time as possible together before both of us went off to college. No lie, being 1900 miles away from your best friend is hard.
9. August 28, 2014: I said goodbye to the 205 and hello to the 801 of Utah County. That day, Gibby had promised me earlier, if I didn't help him move in at Bama, he would come to the airport to say goodbye to me, and he didn't disappoint. He drove me all the way to the airport and waited until I went to security to say goodbye. I will admit I cried, and he did too, a little I think. But he is a guy, so I can never be too sure. December 20th had never felt so far away.
10. September 1, 2014: I started my first semester of college at the school of my dreams, BYU.
11. October 4, 2014: I got the chance to go to my very first General Conference instead of watching it live on BYUtv every year.
12. October 31, 2014: My new group of friends and I went camping in Butterfield Canyon. Yes there was a huge party on Center St that night that I was dying to go to, but getting to camp in my Eno hammock for the first time was a huge thrill. Everyone slept in the big tent, except for me and one of my other friends Enoch. He too had an Eno hammock, and he also brought a tarp to keep the wind out. We managed to fit both of our hammocks under the tarp and sleep through the wind storm the entire night. Needless to say I love hammock camping.

13. Thanksgiving weekend: I was able to take the train up to Ogden and spend the holiday with my grandma, aunt and uncle, and my three cousins and their wives and kids. Seeing one of my cousins I hadn't seen in about three years was for sure the highlight to my entire holiday.
14. December 6, 2014: I went on a road trip with my FHE brothers, Paul, Chad, Scott, and Nate to Salt Lake City for a day. We wandered around City Creek Mall, but the highlight to our day was  temple square and seeing the beautiful Christmas lights.

Chad drove.

L to R: Scott, Paul, and Nate.

15. December 18-20, 2014: I said goodbye to Paul before he headed back home to Billings, Montana. Later I said goodbye to Chad for 2 years. He has been called to serve in the El Salvador San Salvador East Mission, and he reports to the Guatemala MTC on March 4, 2015. That Saturday I turned 19, but I was also finally COMING HOME. After 4 months I finally got to see my parents and best friend again. When I finally landed in Birmingham and saw my mom I couldn't stop crying. All of the people I cared about were there at the airport waiting to see me. I couldn't be more grateful to have such loving people in my life. I honestly could have cared less that that day was my birthday. All I could focus on was the fact that I was finally home and with the people I loved the most.

TL: Gibson TR: Gabe BL: Neely

Now here they are: out of all the most amazing memories, the hardest 15 I have ever had to choose. Some of you may ask: why isn't Christmas one of your top 15 faves? Christmas comes every year, but the memories I chose probably only come once in a lifetime. 
As this year comes to a close, I ask that you all sit back and relive the memories that you want to keep forever. Write them in a journal, retell them to your family and friends, or post them on a blog. These memories can have made you smile or cry. They don't all have to be happy memories. I want them to be memories that'll help you remember the year 2014.

Much love to you all and to all a soon to be very happy New Year!
                       McKenzie :)