Flashback to early August 2014
I'm not exactly in the best of shape. I mean, at one point in my life...for several years actually...I was able to do unbelievable amounts exercise with hardly any effort at all. That was high school.
Not that I'm...ummm....way passed high school....let's just say that when I come face to face with a flight of stairs, I'm not so sure I'll make it to the top. So, it may come as a surprise that in August...not only did I play in a 2-day Volleyball tournament amongst a gym full of athletic eleventh graders.....but that my team came in 2nd place out of 10 teams! Yes, my team made up of myself (34 years old), my sister, Ginger, (31 years old), a friend Melinda (pushing mid-forties) and another friend (youngest on the team...24). All of us, former high school and most of us former college athletes, certainly dug deep within and still proved we still had it! It was SO MUCH FUN and I felt great. I can't imagine the rush I'd feel if I were in shape! If that were the case...we, no doubt would have come in 1st place...but probably wouldn't have made that post-tournament stop at The Longhorn for cheeseburgers and french fries! Hahaha...
The tournament was in Tombstone....which is where I attended high school. Although we played the tournament at the new high school....and the high school that I called "The home of the Yellowjackets" is nothing more than an old abandoned-like building in the middle of town...it was still like going down memory lane. As close as I live to Tombstone (20 miles away), I hardly ever visit anymore. After the first day of games, Ginger and I decided to go for dinner in town. We headed to Allen Street, the main street in Tombstone, where the local business are located along the creaky boardwalk and dirt road. We parked at the old high school (our high school) and I was instantly hit with memories of basketball games, bus rides and inappropriate crushes that I lived for back in the late 90's. We ate dinner, like I said, at The Longhorn, which seems to be the only place I can think of in Tombstone when asked where one should get dinner. I hardly recognized Allen Street. The businesses that I remember being there were all replaced, except of course for The Longhorn.
The next night...Kevin (Ginger's husband) came to watch us play and Brady got to come, too. We ended up in second place and the 4 of us celebrated with, yep, round 2 at The Longhorn! It was great food and fun to be back in a town that shaped a lot of who I am today. The teachers, coaches, friends and simple life that Tombstone offered me truly did enrich my life in a way that I can't explain. Yes, there's a big world outside of Tombstone, Arizona...but for 4 years...it was home.
