Parking in the driveway earlier this week, I noticed my dad standing in the doorway. He saw me coming and walked down the steps toward me, grabbed my laundry basket and started walking toward the house.
"Are you ready for this?" he asked me.
"Ready for what, Dad?" I said, both curious and confused.
"You'll see," he laughed.
Entering the house I heard Jeffrey running around, talking and giggling. Turning the corner to see what all the fuss was about, I noticed a little bundle of fur next to him, rolling on the floor and playing with a toy, as cute as could be.
"This is Cooper," Jeffrey told me. "Isn't he so cute?"
My family bought a little dog, a Papillion, for Jeffrey. He has been really upset lately about Brad leaving for college, because with two of us out of the house, he feels lonely already.
"He's my new friend," Jeffrey told me. "Since you guys are gone, he will always be around, and I'm going to train him. Don't you love him already?"
Within minutes we all loved him. Even-tempered, quiet and loving, he seems to have the perfect qualities for any dog. Most importantly, he will keep Jeffrey happy and busy, and as they say, a dog is a man's best friend.
A little while later Brad strolled through the door. He picked Cooper up and carried him around for a minute, before putting him down.
At this point he was leaving for school in just a few short days, and he really needed to start getting his stuff together. It's funny how quickly things can change.
As Brad started to move out, Cooper joined the family, and soon, Brad and I will be back at the same school. Life really does work in mysterious ways.
I watched Brad for a few minutes, as he started bringing all of his school items downstairs.
He loaded it into the dining room, looked at it, and wondered what he really needed and what he didn't.
He reminded me of my friends and me years ago, the first time we left for school.
Parents always say that it's easier to send the second child off to college than the first, because after a while you get used to the change in the family.
But being the older sister watching my little brother get ready for his first year of college was a little overwhelming.
He's really growing up and changing, and I know exactly how it feels.
His girlfriend, Courtney, was leaving for Maryland a few days before him, and as they left to go to Wal-Mart for some last-minute items, I felt the same pit in my stomach for him that I had years earlier.
Some things never change I guess, and everybody has to go through the harder moments to get to the better ones.
A lot will change for Brad this year, and also for Jeffrey and my parents.
With each passing year, every family changes.
The trick is to stay together and to stay strong through each change, and to understand that different doesn't mean bad.
Sometimes the changes can bring about new happiness and as families begin to grow, we all welcome new people into our lives.
Being away at school is great, there is no doubt about it. After not being home for a while though, we begin to notice all of the things we have missed and how much things have changed while we have been away.
As busy as our lives are each day, it is important to make sure we stay in touch and that we keep our families a priority. No matter what happens, who comes along, or who leaves our lives, our families will always be there for us, and that's what we need to remember.
Through growing, changing and moving, family comes first.
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Ashley Chamberlain, a 2005 Pinkerton Academy graduate, is a senior at UNH. She is in her fifth year as a Derry News columnist.
