This was it guys. My last Strawberry Days where I am definitely going to be a Pleasant Grove resident. Strawberry Days literally is my favorite week of the year. It was like everyone in my whole city was just celebrating. For once, I don't know how well I can actually convey my feelings. Just know my biggest fear for this post is that I start crying while writing it. That's how much Strawberry Days means to me.
Believe it or not, Missouri does not celebrate Strawberry Days. Neither do Wyoming, Nebraska or Ohio. So why am I here? Well, I wanted to go to my niece's baptism and my other niece's baby blessing, plus it was the last time I could get a chance to see my brother and his family before my mission. In complete honesty, if you offered me a free trip to anywhere that didn't have these family things mixed with them, and I had to go on the trip during Strawberry Days, the answer would be no.
Yesterday was Huck Finn Day. It's such a stupid thing for me to be sad because I missed, but I am. Helping with Strawberry Days wasn't always super fun, but I loved every second of it because I was making the magic happen. Somewhere there was a kid who is celebrating the first Strawberry Days that he will actually have memories of and I am making that experience just amazing. Huck Finn Day was one of the best. Every year I would be up to help with anything except lifting kids on and off horses and every year I would have to do that for at least an hour. I almost got sued because a kid stole a prize and his mom saw me grab his wrist. Little brat. I would have unlimited access to soda, doughnuts and bubble gum, not to mention plenty of time to flirt with the royalty while they painted faces. Huck Finn Day was where I could be in charge for a few minutes, where I could get a taste of what would be coming the next day.
The finale of Strawberry Days has been and always will be the Mammoth Parade (most people don't even realize that is the name of it). I would walk to the high school drag at 7:00 in the morning and then, then I had the power. If you watched the parade the past three years, the second half would have been a total disaster without me. I made sure people went to the right spot, made sure the knew who they were following, and finally I would make sure they followed that person. The amount of responsibility you have is directly correlated with the amount of times someone yells at you for something out of your control. This was the day that happened every five minutes, so basically I was the powerhouse of control. I was even in the Parade once, but I still organized it up until I had to put on the Viking suit and walk the entire parade route in a rubber head and 100 degree weather. Best day ever (NOT sarcastic). The one time I was in the Strawberry Days Parade and I was literally a walking symbol of Pleasant Grove, the high school mascot.
The city of Pleasant Grove is literally the best city in the world. No, I'm not exaggerating. Literally, nowhere else are the people as amazing as where I grew up. It was like everyone in PG was your best friend. It's a place where a kid could work so hard on the grease pole climb and the mayor himself would help him crawl to the top (true story). It's a place where love was passed around cups full of strawberries and cream. It's a place where no matter what happened to make your life worse than anything you've yet come across, you wouldn't have to worry because the people of Pleasant Grove still cared about you.
People say that on their missions, the hardest part is saying goodbye. The hardest part for me will be different. It will be driving from the MTC to the airport. Driving past the exit to the happiest place on earth without getting off. Seeing the G for one last time with getting the chance to consider hiking to it. Not being able to go through the streets I know so well and say hello to the familiar faces. Not being able to go to the high school and say thanks to all my friends and all the teachers who changed my life. The hardest part will be driving by for the last time with nothing but a glance. I will be leaving my home for two years and the last time I see it it will be from the freeway.
I don't want to end this blog post because when I do, I feel like I'm already saying goodbye to Pleasant Grove. I guess I couldn't help but cry. I love Pleasant Grove. It is, and always will be, my home and the greatest place ever to exist.
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