Once in a Lifetime

On a pretty regular basis, I hear people talk about "once in a lifetime" experiences. You know what I am talking about, the types of events with the types of people that parents justify pulling their kids out of school for. Seeing the president, meeting a famous author or television star, or being the first person to see a movie. They are the kinds of experiences that you brag about to your friends, and think about for years to come. They may lose their merit as the years go on, (I mean, meeting Miley Cyrus is cool when you are a 10-year-old, but would you care so much about it when you are, say, 40?) Or, they can become more meaningful as time goes on, and as the person you saw goes from being a candidate for president, to our first African-American president (this really happened to me, I'll gladly share the story, if you haven't already heard it 17 times.) But, no matter who it was or when you saw them, it still is remembered as "once in a lifetime." Nothing (well, of course that are certain things that can happen) can take away that giddy feeling deep in inside, that bubbles up at the very thought of that moment in time. Once in a lifetime experiences are few and far between. The moments that stick with you for years and years to come. The stories that people write about on their blogs... Do you see where I'm going with this? Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you, my list of once in a lifetime experiences and encounters...

- Alton Brown Book Signing
- Seeing Barack Obama in Hartford, CT
- General Synod in Hartford, CT
- Mission trip to Immokolee, FL
- Book Chat with Mawi Asgedom
- Burger King Protest in Miami, FL
- Peace Protest in Hartford, CT
- Bo Diddley performing the Orlando History Center
- Swam with Dolphins at Discovery Cove

There could be more, but it's not the number of once in a lifetime experiences make them great, it's the significance the moments hold for you.

- Katie