Mod & Bean

Once upon a time we were all 14 and venturing off to Washington DC for the first time. Once upon a time we made a promise to return to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom. That time was this past weekend, as its been 8 years since our first visit and we were long overdue.

Our promise to come visit Maria at GW for cherry blossom season came at the perfect moment. I, in particular, had been plagued by homesickness and seriously considering flying home to Miami for one day - since what else am I supposed to do with no class on Wednesdays? Luckily, this cherry blossom trip had already been booked, and seeing at least some of my home friends cured me quickly.

I guess homesickness doesn’t always necessitate home, but rather people who feel like home. And these girls are just that. I met Andrea in the sixth grade, Val in the seventh, and Maria shortly thereafter in the ninth. And while Maria was not at our first group DC trip in the eighth grade, its her collegiate affiliation that brought us all back to fulfill our promise.

And fulfill our promise we did. Despite having a cancelled flight from Boston to DC, Andrea and I still made it in time for a night on the town with Val and Mar, and a morning after of sleep ins and flower frolicks. (Cherry Blossom pop-up bar included).

I can’t even begin to describe to you how beautiful the cherry blossoms are at full bloom - which we miraculously timed our trip to witness. With clear skies and radiant sunshine, I wasn’t only warmed by the weather but by the presence of the people who feel like home to me, no matter where in the world we are.

After thoroughly clogging traffic at the Tidal Basin to take 482 pictures (on my camera alone), we tried to escape the traffic at brunch and simply enjoy one another’s company - a luxury that might not return too often as we each embark on our post grad plans of big city jobs and grad schools.

The weekend, long in the making in our dreams, was everything we could’ve imagined - save missing two of our other home friends Alexa and Karenne. But even 24 hours with a fraction of my friends recharged my heart and filled me with the bittersweet feeling of freshly bloomed nostalgia.

Xx, Maia