This morning, after the rain, as I ran
along the sidewalk, I fell in love with a small snail
crawling along the just-wet concrete, and later in the day,
with a young green onion sprouting in my garden.
And after I transported the snail to safer earth,
away from the drying path and giant steps, and
weeded the glazed dirt, nose filled with petrichor,
I had a fresh tangerine,
electric orange and dripping with juice.
I could feel myself falling again
as I held its weight in my hands.
I don’t need much, just
the love of butterfly stickers, of
warm freshly-laundered socks, of
steamy evening showers, of winter sunrises, of
late night rides blasting Cigarettes After Sex.
That’s the best kind of love:
without suspicions or unbearable expectations,
without knife-like words or heavy silences,
without tears or slamming doors.
Just peace and beauty.
I am glad to exist.
Sophia Zhang is a high schooler from the Bay Area whose been awarded by Scholastic, Youngarts, and Women on Writing for her work. Apart from writing, Sophia is also passionate about Taylor Swift and pickles!