“Memory… is the diary that we all carry about with us.” – Oscar Wilde

You remember, right?

You step outside your house, excited and eager to start a new year.

On your feet are new shoes, bright and unmarked, ready for those first few scuffs that you will at first try to rub off in a vain effort to keep them pristine, but will soon accept because you know the newness will not last beyond lunchtime anyway. On your back rests a backpack, waiting to be filled with books and homework and secretly-passed love notes from the cute new boy that will sit three desks behind you. You haven’t met him yet, but you’re positive that when you do, he’ll only have eyes for you.

In front of you is the bus or car that will take you to school. Or maybe you will ride your Schwinn or walk with a gaggle of your best friends. However you get there, your mom will be beside you—crying—before you take off, just like she always does on your first day.

Above you, the leaves on the trees that have watched over you year after year flicker green and gold against a cloudless, azure sky and, as they wave you away in the warm breeze with good wishes, one of them breaks off and floats toward you. You catch it and appreciate its early autumn beauty. Continue reading “Time to Begin”