circa 1977.

Circa 1977: UF Homecoming Parade

Over 30 years ago, 2 people met for the first time at the Country Village pool in the muggy heat (as we all know) of a Gainesville summer.  My mom, exhibit A, looked stunning in a lime green bathing suit en route to law school & my dad, exhibit B, was a handsome nerd planning on attending medical school in the near future.  Even if the "spark" wasn't immediate, they instantly liked each other & (I'm going to get real cliche here & tell you...) the rest is history.

My parents were just kids at the time... to be exact they were about my age (scary I know... I always forget that my parents had a life before me.  I guess it just wasn't a good life yet) attending UF, just like me.  Well anyway, they met, went on a few dates... blah blah blah, a few years went by... blah blah blah & then they got married in 1980; had a few kids, moved to Florida, lived their lives, became world travelers, discovered the cure for cancer, & fell in love with Colorado.  You know, the usual.

It is amazing how time flies by.  33 years later & my parents are still best friends.  I know because I can see it in their banter.  They make fun of each other... the proof of a great relationship is being able to laugh at yourself.  My mom asks stupid questions (i.e. "Where are the SWISS Family Robinson from?" or "I wonder what state the Colonel who started KFC (everyone & their mom, except mine apparently, knows what that stands for!!) is from?") & my dad says sub-par jokes & puns about EVERYTHING, but in the end it's all about compatibility.  And sure, it wasn't always easy, but that's just life & the way it is, & it's more important to look back at those hard moments & know they just made you stronger & a little bit closer.

I always make the analogy, but I think it works here as well: when watching a soccer game & you look back at the goalie's performance, you always remember that shot he or she missed, & you ignore the amazing saves that were made.  Why when we look back do we always remember the bad stuff?  It doesn't make any sense because behind every bad(ish) thing that happens there are 4748657634 good things screaming for attention:

Like the time Daniel made an actual funny joke about "fins to the left, fins to the right" when there was scuba equipment in the trunk, or the time Scott just "didn't know when he was almost done," or when Suki was a surprise for Hanukkah, or when we had a family flan fight in the kitchen just because, or when we went to almost every European country in a span of 10 years, or when just spending 1 night in an RV in an Alaskan parking lot was "the best vacation ever," or when we went to 47486 soccer games across the state, or when we celebrated Christmas in the snow, or when we had snowball fights in the Steamboat hot tubs, or when we saw dad's face in the skydiving video, or when I signed all my cards with 008 INC. because I am a super spy who loves the number 8, or when you sent the Thanksgiving menu & included graphically where the goat cheese came from, or when mom started painting again, or that time in Africa when everyone knew who "DEBBIE" was, or when we bought our Snowmass condo & turned it into our haven, or when we were all together again this summer for the first time in years, or when you won the lottery (just kidding... I was just seeing if you were paying attention), or when you just lived this amazing life with the best set of 5 people there is.

When you think about all that life above, you know that you created something special: a family.  Just 2 kids who met sometime in 1977 grew up & formed this incredible family with incredible aspirations & futures.  If it weren't for that lime green bathing suit or my dad's guts, this post would not be happening right now... which means I wouldn't be happening right now & neither would Daniel nor Scott.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is this: thank you for meeting, getting a cheese plate at the Mad Monk's Inn, marrying, staying together, loving each other every day & us kids, looking at each other as if not a single day has gone by since 1977, being involved in our lives, taking us with you when you became world travelers, making room for all 3 of us in your busy & professional lives, giving us EVERYTHING we ever wanted, giving up single life & work for our futures, being the best parents that ever existed, & sending me to UF, where hopefully I can wash, rinse, & repeat.

Here's to the best couple & their UF alumni status (even though my mom is wearing garnet... oops!) & all the things/years in between!  

Parents weekend: 2011

LOVE,
Rachele (008 INC.)