We were the WOO girls

Today, I feel happy. But more than happy, what I’m experiencing is joy. I feel it in my

jellies. I feel it in my bones. I feel it with the aches and twinges as I move around after having a weekend of fun filled girl time. My voice is gone. There are shadows beneath my eyes. My nail polish is chipped. But all of it feels Oh-So-Good. I spent the last 4 days in Key West for a bachelorette party for a good friend.

When a girlfriend is getting married, it should be a time to celebrate. You make plans. Save money. Take off work. Make arrangements for your kids and your pets. You paint your nails. And most importantly, you shave your legs!

It’s important to show up for you friends.

So as I sit here on my couch, browsing the dozens upon dozens of photos I have in my phone, all I feel is joy. Joy for showing up.

I keep thinking about walking around Duval Street around 1230 am. Taking pictures. Laughing. Dancing on the sidewalk. Buying giant saucer size cookies. Talking to strangers. Literally making memories with every single step. And these aren’t just any memories. These are memories that make an impact. And I’m not sure if it’s the same for everyone. But the feeling of smiling and dancing, arm in am with my fellow midnight comrades, literally singing in the streets, you better believe, that stuff matters! Eating Wendy’s french fries on the way back to the hotel, waving at the new friends we’ve made during our evening out as they stroll by, and them choosing to stop and chat with the girls they watched walking around with multicolored wigs and contagious laughter. We were the WOO girls this weekend. So many opportunities to say “WOO!”. And we were proud.

We met bachelor parties. We met other bachelorette parties. We met ex-politicians from Tallahassee. We met finance guys from Maryland. We met people from Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, and even played beer pong with two guys from England, just to name a few. We met a guy with super short shorts and fun sun glasses, who was not only wearing these glasses at night, but also, inside a dark club. Whatever works! We met women who walked around topless and gave us the middle finger when we didn’t join in their topless splendor. We met fun people. We also met some not so fun people. We met people who only spoke to us because we were a bunch of girls out on the town. We met people who only wanted to talk to us because they wanted our little sombrero headbands and beaded necklaces. We met people who were super genuine and wanted to sit and talk with us like a normal human beings. And the greatest part about that is that we ended up hanging out with these people the next night as well! We met people who bought our drinks, took our pictures and danced around with us. And I met people who I now get to see inside of their personal lives because we shared our Instagrams. Will I ever see/talk/interact with these people ever again??

No idea.

The point is, we shared our nights with so many other people, and I loved every single second of it.

I walked inside a beautiful Episcopalian church. It was quiet. And empty. The rancorous sounds from the street died away the further I walked into the church. The stained glass windows were decorated with geometric shapes of reds and blues and gold. The heavy dark wood of the rafters, the golden wood of the pews, the quiet music, the small tea prayer candles, the giant organ pipes, all of it available for me to sit and gape at. Beautiful splendor and definitely a feast for the eyes. I said a prayer and lit a candle. And back into the party fray I went.

Its times like these that help me see the sunny side. It helps to close the gap of crummy memories and lousy days. When you make time to go and celebrate something, like a girlfriend getting married, it carves out a memory for you. And sometime down the road, when you see a sign, hear a song, take a shot, see a picture, and even smell a smell, it takes you back, just for a moment, you go back to this memory and it warms your heart. At least it does for me.

To be honest, having girl time is essential. Having girlfriends is critical. Sorry if you’re one of those people, those girls who only have guy friends cause you think girls cause drama…I’m sorry to break it to you, buuuuut you’re the problem boo-boo. Girl time is the best. Especially when you’ve with good people. People who are fun and happy. Full of life. Free of judgement. Free of the worries back home, even if it’s for a few days. People who just want to enjoy themselves and are happy to have you around.

Even with the strangers we met on the street. Not all were created equal, lemme tell you. Some people were selfish. Full of malice and ill intent. They color your day with gray and make you cross the street if you see them approaching. Rude people. Slimey men. Witchy women. Stank faces. Gross people yall.

But, then there are the great people you meet. And it’s like you’re in a bubble with these new “friends”, if only for a little while. You share memories with them that you get to take home and think about the next day. And they get to carry memories of you too! They have you stamped in their mind from a good conversation, a magical toast with tequila shots, dancing parties, or high fives after you’ve belted out karaoke to a room of mostly strangers. These people may only ever live in your phone pictures after you head back home, but the times you spent together help to mesh the memories into thread, that now is woven into your mind. Like a knitted blanket of good memories. That’s good shit right there!

It’s been a few weeks since the bachelorette party. I started this post the day we came back. The bride and another girl ended up with Covid. I ended up with some sort of throat infection. My bank account is a little lighter. But my heart is full. My cup is full and runneth over. I’ve spent the last few weeks smiling to myself, making picture collages to post of our amazing time. And I get that feeling. That feel good feeling in my jellies. The tingly feeling in my finger tips, that scalp pricking, smiling inducing feeling, thinking about the embarrassing things I did or said. The silly pictures that are captured on my phone. The intimate conversations I shared with my friends and the black mail memories I now carry with me. Not to worry though, I guard those secrets with my life. And I hope they guard the ones of me just as fiercely. And always remember girls, we can’t take responsibility for our future self…she makes her own choices!