Last weekend, I was invited to Cameron. The invitation was from my cousin and his girlfriend. It was unexpected and made me smile because it meant that even after spending all week together (side note, my cousin is also my roommate), he still wanted to hang out more. I love relationships like that. Anyways, I was invited over with the intent of going to the local car show. My cousin Colton was planning to show his Mustang, and it all sounded too fun to pass up, so I drove to Cameron midday Friday after my last class let out. And let me just tell you now, I had the best time.

As soon as I got there, I was able to unwind. There is something so entirely wonderful about a change of scenery. Don't get me wrong, College Station is a great town, but I am a country girl at heart, and there is just something about the peace and quiet and the crickets that make you go —ah.

After I unpacked, Colton's girlfriend Faith and I promptly threw on our swimsuits and ran to the pool. The day was easy, breezy, and beautiful. The pool was perfect, and the conversations were great, but my favorite part was fishing later that day. We walked down to the lake, grabbed two poles (I chose the pink one, of course), and cast out. On that first cast, I reeled in a seven, eight, or nine-pound bass. At this point, you're probably thinking—wow, this girl has no idea what she is talking about. But to the contrary, I know that every good fish tale is exaggerated, so I purposefully wanted to leave a little to your imagination. But for the record, we'll just say it was a 10-pound bass (insert wink here).

Anyways, we were out there for most of the afternoon that first day and the following one. The serenity was just what I needed. The blustery weather and the warm sunshine were delightful. I enjoyed every lazy minute on that dock. Because life just gets too busy sometimes. It's all go, go, go, and never stop, stop, stop. I think that with every new year, the fast forward button gets pressed once more. It becomes difficult to keep up and even harder to enjoy. Consequently, I encourage you to take some time this weekend to do something slow and relaxing with some of your favorite people. There is no time like the present to be present and enjoy your life. And it doesn't have to be fishing; you can do whatever. But it's an easy wager that I caught a lot more than a fish that day, so I highly recommend it. Ha! That sounds super cliche, but it's true. I nabbed some relaxation, laughter, a special memory, and I was able to turn down the fast forward, if only for a little while.

Oh! I almost forgot. In my quest to create a parable about fishing (like that's never been done before), I forgot to mention the car show. It was neat. And, yeah. I'm sorry, I really don't know anything about cars! But here's a joke—what did the hotrod do to the mustang? He branded him. There, and now you know that I love cheesy jokes.