greenest green

Celebrate we will
'cause life is short but sweet for certain - hey!
We climb on two by two
to be sure these days continue
Things we cannot change
-Dave Matthews Band, Two Step

I don't want to grow up. I want to spend a thousand more Georgia summers wading in the creek at Wilshire Trails, catching water-spiders and crayfish. I want to lick a dripping softball-sized scoop of cake batter ice cream supported by a waffle cone from Bruster's as I walk along a shady path of the nearby park. I want to feel the sun's warmth as it bursts out from behind a giant cloud, and welcome it's retreat as another passes beneath it. I want to savor each cool, muggy morning and see the heat waves rising from the asphalt as I climb with sun-burned shoulders into a stifling car after a day at the pool. I want to wake up from a nap in the hammock on the side deck of my dad's house to the smell of fresh-cut grass, walk lazily into the kitchen, pour him a tall glass of ice water, bring it outside, and watch him drink it all in one thirsty gulp before he starts the mower up again. I want to catch fireflies after dark and listen to the crickets' song as I fall asleep.

This is where I have always been coming to. Since my time began. And when I go away from here, this will be the mid-point, to which everything ran, before, and from which everything will run. But now, my love, we are here, we are now, and those other times are running elsewhere. -A.S. Byatt, Possession

I refuse to spend the beginning of my young adulthood mourning the hasty end of my adolescence; to spend countless hours dwelling on the past is no better than wasting days dreaming of the future. I will disregard the present no more. It's important to walk slowly sometimes - to wear a skirt that blows in the wind - to dance when you feel like it - to laugh until it hurts - to read novels and sit outside in the sun - to stay up late talking to your best friends - to feel the bark of your favorite tree with your bare feet - to notice Spring's greenest green and let it surprise you every time.