Everyone occasionally has those nights. These are the nights that are so inexplicably incomprehensible to anyone who wasn't there. They can only be remotely described with a simple shrug and a sighing "You had to be there." These nights are probably not what you'd expect though. Most likely they don't take place at a wild and crazy rave or a scene out of Mission Impossible. No, chances are they are the nights that are made up of the small things. These nights are comprised solely of those unspoken moments where you can only hear the sound of the laughter roaring from a bonfire of old friends sharing familiar stories. They are those nights where you may reconnect with someone you haven't seen in ages, and the second you make eye contact with them in the parking lot it's almost as if no time has passed.
The only downside of these nights can best be put into words in a quote from Andy Bernard from The Office when he said, "I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days before you've actually left them." They happen too quickly to grasp in the moment, so all you can manage to get ahold of is a mason jar full of memories.
That's the beauty of these special nights though. No matter how many times you may glance through those absurdly misconstrued social media platforms of all of your friends and acquaintances, and no matter how many times it looks like they are having the time of their lives, with whatever it is they're doing, deep down you know it can't be that good. The best times you can possibly have come from these nights. They don't come from those outrageously elaborate vacations and fancy meals, but from these nights. The way to be certain of this is by not looking at your phone. If you can go an entire night with your friends without looking at your phone once, other than maybe to check the time or to call your mom back, that's how you know it was official. If you can make it back home with nothing to post, but a smile on your face and some new stories to tell, that's how you know it was a good one. The truth is, these nights are too good for Instagram.
The other magnificent thing about these nights is that no one ever sees them coming. A friend could ask you to come play poker, and you might follow suit, thinking, "Eh, why not?" Little do you know, you're in for a treat. Who would have thought that you'd be lounging on your sofa the weekend after wishing for that night to happen again. You may even try to recreate these nights, but will always fail completely. The spontaneity of these remarkable nights cannot ever be replicated, but the rush of pure joy and utter happiness certainly can. Once you get a taste of one of these nights, it is a drug like no other. My two cents of advice are this: If a friend asks you to go have some fun with them, even if you're exhausted and would rather do anything else, always say yes.
