Ben Gregory. . . a Senior Moment on the Fox River Trail

Ben Gregory. . . a Senior Moment on the Fox River Trail

Ben Gregory, Guest Writer, Creative Writing

Adviser’s Note:  The following is a Creative Writing assignment.  The prompt was “When the song came on the radio, every part of me reacted.”  All of us have moments and memories like this.  Enjoy!

When the song came on the radio, every part of me reacted. I was driving down South Monroe on a summer’s day. The sun was shining with a gentle breeze, the perfect day to go for a drive with the windows down. And that was exactly what I was doing when the song “Who Says” by John Mayer came on. For a moment I felt like I left reality and was completely alone in the universe. The lyrics and the music drifted in my mind and took over my head. They brought back memories I didn’t even know I had and brought back the best moments of my summers.

Looking to my right, I saw the Fox River Trail, which to most people would have no significance, but I remembered my days running there over the summer with the boys. Without thinking, I pulled a quick U turn and headed back in the direction I was coming from with the song still loudly playing. Everything but the song and my mind seemed to be in slow motion. I pulled into a parking lot, so I could walk on the trail. Instantly the summer memories came back:

Loud music playing from four or five cars and about 20 guys getting ready to stretch. I jump out of my car, put my head band over my head, and get my watch set to track the run. Howie calls out stretching orders, and Owen and Reid joke around with everyone. I walk by their side laughing and conversing, but deep down knowing this was a year of lasts. Last practice, last race, last high school everything.

I felt like I was moving with those same guys right now even though I was completely alone. Running on these trails always meant it was a hard run but also meant they were the ones you remember. I recalled the last four years of running here. I went from an average freshman runner to a senior captain helping lead the charge. I remember being completely out of breath after an interval or feeling on top of the world after finishing a hard run. 

I always knew my time on the cross country team would come to an end. I just never knew how much I would miss it. I get back into the car as the song comes to an end. My thoughts now turn to the current day; four years ago I always knew my high school days would come to an end. I just didn’t want it to be like this, knowing that some of these people, probably even a lot of them, I would never see again.