Every hotel was booked. We were on three waiting lists for a hotel room when we decided we needed to change our plan. We scoured Craigslist for a house to rent and booked it just before we departed to Eugene, Oregon for the Olympic Trials. When we arrived, we stared at each other in disbelief…it was as if we walked into a 1962 time capsule. Orange shag rug, a large photo of Marilyn Monroe hung on the wall, and a ceramic owl perched over the fireplace. While I was reading A Sailor's Manifesto that hung in the green bathroom, Melanie brought out a record player and we swayed to Frank Sinatra as we tried to air out the house.
Three days later, we sat on the orange shag rug with glasses of champagne. We toasted to hard work, dedication, glitter headbands, no more Paleo diets, wearing the cutest outfit on the track, and to life. Tears were shed. On Sunday, Brianna jumped wonderfully (her jump would have qualified her for the past two Olympic Trials), but all of the top three long jumpers jumped their personal best. Not one, all three.
It was hard to watch my best friend face the most disappointing moment of her career, but there was beauty in her grace. I've watched her give her life to something she believed in…and hold her head high even when things didn't work out the way she'd hoped. Brianna showed me life is about picking up the pieces, duct-taping them the best you can, and limping on because there's another chapter waiting to be written.
Before we headed to the track on Sunday, we started the day with Mexican food…
Just outside the track, a festival was constructed and we spent a lovely afternoon wandering in the warm sun…
A girl can dream, right?!
The problem with having a twin sister is that she thinks it's still cool to photo bomb a picture…
I know this isn't the best photo, but this was Bri's longest jump of the day and we're incredibly proud of it…
Where's Waldo?
I wished there was a Kiss Cam at Hayward Field, but seeing Brianna on the big screen was second best 😉
When I look at this picture, I see how much Bri is hurting…she masked it well, but if you know her, it's laying just below the surface…
…but it's also nice to know we can make her truly smile at a moment's notice.
Here's to picking up the pieces, duct tape, and starting a new chapter…
