This is My Graduation Day

It's something past 1am, and I'm sitting in front of my open window. The birds are chirping absurdly loud right outside (it is one. am. why. are. they. doing. this?), and there's a chilly breeze coming through the screen that just feels perfect. Somewhere beyond I can also hear the frogs and crickets from the creek behind our house, and the freeway not far from our street.

Other than that it's dead quiet, minus my typing fingers, snores from different family members, and the occasional crack or creak from a wall.
Everything feels so peaceful right now.

I need to go to bed soon, seeing as I have to get up in 7 or 8 hours, but I really don't want to ruin this moment.
Tomorrow(today)'s gonna be filled with rushing and primping and large groups of people and probably some arguing and drama and all that annoying stuff. I'm trying to tell myself that everything's gonna run smoothly; that the two sides of my family won't tear each other apart, and that I'll get to graduation on time and not do something stupid like, I don't know, trip onstage, or blink when they take the picture...maybe not worrying would be a start?

I can't believe school's done. I have vivid memories of kindergarten; that small wooden picnic table where I'd sit and eat my cheese-and-crackers. I remember those twins coming up to me almost every day and asking for a cracker. I remember naptime and finger painting and hanging pictures on hooks outside the class to dry. I remember mornings spent getting hair braided, cleaning glasses, drinking carrot juice, listening to 'Julio' on repeat on my brothers' walkmans, riding around the yard on my bike and trying not to get bitten by our rooster, our immense amount of chickens and hens, afternoons spent learning to read both print and braille/write braille with Mrs. Keyson(Pastel, back then), baths with those waterbabies, stuffed animal playtime, and watching Nick Junior (I loved Franklin...i think he was a turtle?)...and then I remember random things from the 12 years that brought me to here.
Watching novellas on weeknights, loving math and spending hours on it for fun, learning braille contractions(where my hatred for flashcards first began), drawing pictures, writing stories, trying to master the printed Q and G/J, dodge ball tag and capture the flag, those elementary school olympics, milk cartons and pizza sticks, Rugrats and Pokemon, barbie dolls and my Kelly collection, meeting Jalapeno, German caroling, the Santa breakfast, my first year of choir, my first singing role in a play, community theatre, Goddess Athena, trying endlessly to "misplace" my horrid lunchbox (how'd it get on the roof of that classroom? I have nooooo idea.), Isadora Quagmire, Series of Unfortunate Events, lemon heads, those Pringles with the funfacts printed on them, Michael starting mrine training, endless family turmoil, tears and naive laughs, my bunny, that frog, the starfish i had for a day, the Helen Keller speech, my first best friend turned 'enemy', Josie's turtles, Burger King after school, my first babysitting experience, the rock climbing wall at the braille olympics, horseback riding, camp Bloomfield, Outdoor School, the DARE Dance/graduation, TRL, getting my first taste of the teenage angst/depression that kept re-appearing, first Hilary Duff concert, winning radio Disney prizes, American Idol (kellykellykelly), jolly jumpers, birthday parties, pinatas, barbecues, the tooth fairy, Santa Clause, our elementary "graduation" and being suuuuper upset that mom didn't go, walking home and to school every day, countless sprained ankles, falling and scraping a knee or elbow regularly, actually wanting braces because I wanted to look more like Eliza Thornberry...
And in middle school things felt pretty much the same...there was a TONNNNN more of that teenage FML angst going on, still being a math pro, discovering a love for poetry/lyrical writing, finding it harder to "fit in", more TRL, makeup, dying hair, cutting hair super short, Meeting Krys and Ivie, having things to do on Friday nights, getting yelled at constantly at movie theaters, those old ladies that hated us, Marshals, first rock concert, Jack in the Box, discovering MySpace, my wardrobe consisting of 90% clothes with skulls on it, becoming HSM obsessed, Harry Potter obsessed too, meeting one of the Spy Kids and Raven Simone, a lot more choir and plays, learning about WICKED and RENT, watching all those 80's classic movies for the first time, Gilmore Girls love, Starbucks fraps, sleepovers, being really sad to leave Colina, Promotion, more Camp Bloomfield, hiking, smores, campfires, talent shows, dances...
And high school? Well, I documented a lot of that here....
Having to deal with a teacher i really did not like, actually starting to really dislike math (thanks, geometry), loving lyrics and poetry more and more, whacky pictures with Krys and the girls, getting kicked out of stores or theaters, midnight sleepover snacks, baking cookies for Crys's home ec class, straightening Ivie's hair, more Hil Duff shows, meeting AJ Michalka (I did not spell that correctly...) at a verizon store, pumpkin spice lattes, discovering that I was weirdly obsessed with gay rights issues, more choir, San Diego trip (Shamooooooo), festivals, theatre life, sleepovers around Christmas, no longer braiding my hair, Moose getting bigger, getting teeth pulled, getting braces taken off, opening that e-mail with "No Good" as an attachment, buying my first "Don't Look Away" copy, using that music to help me get through bullying and such, watching all previous seasons of One Tree Hill over the 07 fall, growing apart from some of my closest friends, Jalapeno moving to Louisiana, getting closer with Z, joining YESSI, "THe Outsiders", "Bean Trees", writing a paper on Mean Girls, accepting that guys weren't really my cup of tea, seeking new friends a la internet, meeting Kate at that instore on July 7 08, going to my first Kate/Veronicas/Natasha show, hearing about Twilight, staying up insanely late, horror movies, boat rides, hikes, a plethora of Kate-Amy shows, a blur of homework and performances, meeting people that have changed my life so much, piercings and long hair again, journalism, more and more and more American Idol, more and even more One Tree Hill, trying sushi, STEP...I don't know where this last list begins and ends; I feel like it's still being written, but it's really not. High school is done, and it's insane.

I don't expect anyone to read through that...it was just a sort of personal documentation kind of thing.
But if you do happen to read, disregard any spelling errors, it's uhh, past 2am now. yawn.