Write a monologue from a man who is reminiscing about his life; specifically, about the time in his life between high school and the start of his career - about five years. The tone is somber and has the feeling of possible longing to go back to this particular time in the person's life.
I remember being in high school, having a great girlfriend who was also my best friend at the time, and we would do everything together...go to the movies, attend concerts, and just enjoy each other's company.

After high school ended, however, we grew apart, and she left me. We went to college, but I had a difficult time concentrating and eventually was put on academic probation for failing all my classes. I decided to wander around without any direction and contemplate my depressing life.

Then, about a few months later, I got a job as a salesperson and worked with some of my friends from high school. It was a fun time for me because it was something new and interesting, and I got to hang out with people I knew. But all that ended three years later when I was fired for being late to work one too many times. However, before being fired, I met my future wife while we both worked at that company. So I had someone in my corner those days.

Life has a funny way of kicking you when you're down, and then picking you up and dusting you off just before you decide to jump off a cliff. That happened to me - literally. I sat around the house, collecting unemployment and smoking cigarettes, and drinking to numb the pain. But then, after a year of not working and skulking around, I was hired for a new job that would eventually become my career - and a defining moment in my life. In this job, I became someone of importance who made a difference in the world.

The training before being fully employed was both physically and mentally tough, but after nine months of sticking through it, I became a full-fledged employee of a government job. My first assignment was working with a group of people who were known in the company as "go-getters"; every day working with them was both an adventure and a learning experience, and I learned so much from every one of them. 

It's been 20 years since that time in my life, and yet I can remember those days like it was yesterday. I still get teary-eyed thinking about those times, because it's a time that happened, but I can't relive except in my head. I miss it so much.