Early one Saturday morning, my two friends and I were preparing to take an early morning hike through the woods. Waking up a half hour later than we initially expected, put a very hectic start on the morning. Rushing to change into suitable clothes for the hike had our memories boggled also.

Shoes were on, jackets were zipped, and breakfast was packed, everything seemed to be going well. Before the sun could even peek over the forested horizon we were off. After walking about a half mile our minds began to recover after the less than perfect introduction to a new day. The bitter yelps of coyote’s in the distance hit our memories like an opossum on the highway. We forgot our camera! One of the main reasons we even went on these early morning escapades was to snap pictures of the woodland plants and animals. Tempers rose as we began to figure out who was dimwitted enough to forget the camera. Our friend Brandon was the one responsible for the foolish actions.

After walking down the complex highways of deer paths that have been carved out through the overgrown brush and weeds, the burden of humiliation and regret that was placed upon Brandon’s shoulders began to take its toll. The further we walked the less he spoke. After another half hour passed all communication between the two of us and him seized totally. By the time we reached the edge of the woods no animals had
been spotted and Brandon was crying. Feeling sorry for how pathetic he was acting, I apologized.

To this day I have had a very different outlook on Brandon. Just something about seeing him cry changed the friendship a lot, and not in a good way either. Sometimes a little mistake can lead to some bigger problems later on. That was the lesson that was learned from these unexpected circumstances.