Rainy days never get me down

I’ve been sort of busy with the wedding plans, moving in and all around helping with all that jazz. It’s been fun to make fun of Trace with each day coming closer to his impeding nuptials. It looks like it might be fair weather for the wedding night, my G says if it rains on your wedding day that it’s a good sign.
Thinking back on Trace as we all grew up together, I never imagine him being married before me. It’s funny to see him take on responsibilities like a grown up, oh, he is going to kill me for that but I suspect he won’t be reading this for a while.
I remember the day I met him, well actually Jacks met him first. We just moved into the new beach house tinkering around on the beach. Jacks naturally gravitated to this guy on a surf board and they became instant friends. Inseparable they were, getting into trouble at Sunday school and later church services. Traces father is the preacher, so the wrath really was cast upon them just about every weekend.
Rock battles, colored water balloon fights, pranks, fires, fights, homework, football, baseball, racing, singing, crying, laughing are just some of the crazy thoughts that run in the back of my mind of us growing up
In our early teen years Trace would spend some time with me and Luke, buying fireworks and liquor. The summer that my parents left for Europe with the constant parties, he was always just a few houses away for some fun. The summer of haircuts, we three thought that if we cut our hair short on one side, this was Jacks idea, that we would be the coolest guys on the island, this lead to all three of us having a crew cuts and sun burnt heads for that year and constant taunting from the longer haired boys.
Triple dates and double dates was always an adventure with us, since he was the preachers’ son he always wanted to be out of the mold causing havoc where ever he may be.
Ever the defender of his friends he was just as eager as I, in fighting someone for the defense of a friend. During ball games he would be right in the mix of the battle if there was one.
The year I ended up massively dehydrated and in the hospital for those weeks, he helped with the family and made sure they were all comfortable. Especially my little sister, making his little sister hang out with her, he was just that kind of guy.
He and Jack learned to drive together in a beat up pick up truck on my grandparents’ farm. That tree is still nicked pretty furiously to this day and they still won’t say who the driver was.
Later the girls were older and the issues more serious, he kept up with the rest of us dating and being out. At a time I felt he would call off the whole idea of dating again and shunned us all for wanting a partner, those were some long hard weeks but are long gone. His heart is totally taken now; I see it in his eyes when he talks about his future in his little living room the other day. He had a glazed look in his eyes as if he had an open window to the next ten years in view. Trace, my friend I wish you nothing but happiness and hope in your next adventure. You found a wonderful caring and beautiful woman to spend the rest of you days with on this earth.