Sad music;

bright eyes welling up with tears.

Tender, passing moments

knowing my friends love me

and I love them.

Movies with the family;

Saturday mornings as a child.

Forgiveness.

Disreguard for gossip,

for trivial judgments

or judgments at all.

Grass stains and scraped knees,

running in the woods,

sledding in the winter;

fiction I read as a kid,

starry skies and campfire marshmallows.

People being in love

believing that love is real.

Brooke being sarcastic,

Shea reading every novel she can get her hands on,

sci-fi as the sun sets,

acting a bit like a child forever;

Tristan disreguarding the rules

his hair sticking up like a mad scientist,

Grace not being shy.

The band room,

Walter T-shirts,

Feeling intelligent and WORTH something.

Dad drawing blueprints,

building things;

Mom's hugs;

Carefree summers.

Finding acceptance;

The GATE room in middle school,

people who think like me,

bonding at Frost Valley.

A boy's protective body language,

sitting by his girl best friend;

they both secretly want to fall in love

with each other.

Small moments.

People helping each other.

Smiling.