Kara.

My favorite thing about seeing my childhood friends grow-up is the wierd, hilariously-predictable people they become. Many have joined Sororities, others have become potheads, some still have that awkward middle-school face that is halfway between being a child and an adult. These un-changed faces make me LOL. Oh, boys who were once so cute, you are now simply awkward looking men (men is stretch... never men to me, sorry). Alas, childhood memories make me do one of two things: giggle or cringe. This girl, and the memories that come along with her, make me smile, giggle, and, mostly, remind me of how much I loved living in a small town off the north shore of Boston.

I think I (will) like this post the best out of them all, because yes, it's the first post, but mostly because it is a post about a girl that has never really grown up. And I like that and, daily, I long for that to be my own reality just as it is hers. I remember my elementary days with a great fondness and I'm sure I owe part of this to Kara Thomas; this girl was always insanely hard to pin down and impossible to put into a specific box. Everything about Kara was intriguing and made me wonder what made her different from all of us. Even now, I see her as nothing but free; a wild, free, beautiful child. I lived in Essex for 7 years, and most of those years I went to school with Kara Thomas. I remember most distinctly her wild hair behind her, as she would run through the Eagle's Nest playground. I remember her faithfulness to her best friend, Justine (pictured above) who, I am sure, will be her best friend forever. I remember when we were in the musical Annie together; she played one of the orphans and was lucky enough to sing "You're Never Fully Dressed without a Smile". I remember during 5th grade when she made me a cake for my birthday and had my friends surprise me at my house, and later we went sledding down the backyard for birthday festivities; we probably fell thousands of times (neither of us were graceful back then, or now). I remember saying goodbye to her the summer before 6th grade, thinking I would never see her again after I moved to Phoenix, Arizona.

Years later, when I moved back to New England I got together with Kara through a mutual friend, Tavia, who Kara met in high school and I had known her from my Sunday School days. Together, the three of us had a sleepover and we awoke to a winter-wonderland. We decided to frolic through the woods behind Tavia's house. It was such a beautiful sight because the girl I saw among the snow covered trees was the same as the girl I had left 5 years earlier. As we spent time together I saw that Kara didn't hestitate to talk with food in her mouth or plow through the snow like she was a shovel herself. She played with Tavia's dog (shoutout to Addie baby!) with reckless abandon and I recall a mini dance party in which we were both wearing aprons. She was the same kid I always knew.

It took this encounter for me to remember that some souls never grow up or grow old or grow tired or grow bitter or grow stupid. Some souls stay young and will die young. Some souls are tied, even if years and years go by and I forget the color of their eyes or what they sound like when they sing. These souls are tied to me and tug at my heart; no matter who I've become or who they've become, we are still tied.

Our short, yet wonderful encounters happened a few years ago; now she is off at university and I took my gap year in Italy and Turkey, but occasionally we tell each other sweet, personal one-liners that remind us that we still care, that we will always care. There is still music I want to share with her now and then, and funny stories that I think she alone would adore.

My favorite part about this not-so-grown-up childhood friend is her recent tattoo. When I saw it in pictures, I thought one thing "this is perfect for her". On her shoulder she has a sunflower. It is a wonderfully care-free and badass sign that Kara Thomas will always be the girl with wild hair and the girl I went to summer camp with and the girl that still loves things that are undiscovered and unappreciated by most people on this planet. Even now, when she pops up on my facebook, I see her as a wild child with a mystery about her. I see her as a girl with a boisterous laugh and a freedom that cannot be recreated. I see her as an adventure-seeker, a tree-hugger, and a peace-keeper. I hope that she still loves summer and beautiful flowers and friendship. I hope she always remembers who she is; I hope she never stops living life with a recklessness that cannot be matched by even the craziest of youngsters. And no matter where she goes or what she does, I hope she realizes that people she knew or knows or will one day know love that she will always be Kara Thomas, a little kid at heart.

*photo one taken at EYC, Kara now works at EYC during the summer. left to right: Stefanie S. Gardner, Justine Kane, Kara Thomas *photo two and three taken at Tavia's house, one of my many "second homes". left to right: Kara and Stef hugging a tree, Kara and Stef hugging eachother. *photo four taken at Tavia's birthday party, October 2008, center: Kara (pictured with my glasses, her spoon) creeping in the background: Stef (sidenote: I used to creep in the background of all pictures due to Speech and Debate at Desert Vista High School, creeping was our specialty).