XX

Dang.
Joey is twenty.
I can't even believe it.
I remember first meeting Joey at camp in 2006 (I think)
He was this cool kid from Idaho who had a sick snowboarding jacket
and slept on the bunk directly above mine.
Basically, he was way cooler than me.
Then we both ended up moving here to Vancouver and I don't even remember
how we actually became such close friends.

But I remember that first quarter of Clark when we had American History together
and we just sat in the back with Alina and talked the whole time.
I remember when he first got his license and his Jetta, and how awesome
it was speeding down the freeway at night blasting techno.
I remember how one quarter, him and Max came over almost every day to play
ping pong and how we would always compete to see who was the best.
I remember driving up to Mt. Hood and getting stuck in the snow without chains.
I remember spending the night at his house and staying up til like 3 because
we were laughing so hard that we couldn't sleep.

He was one of the few people who had this strange power to make me
laugh uncontrollably, and it still happens to this day.
He's one of the nicest people I know, and I've never seen him mad
(well actually I have, but not a lot)
He's really mellow and doesn't get stressed out easily.

Through all the time we've spent together, it's fascinating to see how he's changed.
He's become more stable, more of a man.
He's come out of his shell,
he's become less afraid to show people who he really is.
He's become more Christlike.

While it was fun to spend time with him before,
it's a lot more so now because our friendship has reached a new depth
with our spiritual growth that we've experienced.
Now we have a much deeper connection that goes beyond just hanging out
for the sake of fun and entertainment.

So Broseph..
Happy Birthday
You are awesome and I'm super blessed to have you as a friend.
This card is obviously sarcastic, because you have your whole life
ahead of you and your future is looking very promising.