It’s a week into summer. You’ve just graduated high school with all your friends and everyone is heading out into the world without much of a clue of what they’re doing. Chances are, you’re never going to see them again. So you and some of you’re friends decide to hang one more time. You have a blast playing outrageous card games, running around with nerf guns like you were still kids, laughing as you all tried to ride scooters and bikes that were far too small, and ignoring the person limit on the trampoline so that you coil all go at once. The day goes perfectly but it eventually leads into night time.
You’re all seated at a campfire, roasting marshmallows, listening to music, and talking about whatever comes to mind. The scene looks like it could be from a movie. A couple games of truth or dare are played even though you’ve never really played it before, and suddenly you start seeing new sides of those friends that you thought you knew so well. The conversations become personal and people aren’t afraid to share their most inner selves. You and your friends talk for hours, speaking parts that no one has ever heard before, until there’s simply nothing else to be said.
You all sit at the campfire for some while more,  everything spoken still hanging in the air, yet only comfort and understanding coming from the closest friends you’ve ever had that you’ll soon never see again. It’s already midnight but someone suggest taking a walk to a small rocky beach to overlook the bay at night. Everyone happily agrees to this wanting to shake off the lingering sadness of some spoken words. A short walk brings you there, to the rocky beach at the midnight bay. Gentle waves lapped onto the shore, a crystal clear starry sky is refracted on the water, and a pleasant breeze drift through the trees from behind the isolated beach. Everyone soon finds their seat, some still talking, some of those in love holding each other close, all looking at the sky above. It feels nearly perfect but you can’t shake the thought of never seeing them again. Never speaking your heart under the stars. Neve being able to console and help your friends with their innermost selves.
You lay down on the oddly comfortable stones, nothing but the stars to be seen and the calm waves rolling onto the shore and quiet chatting to be heard, tears in your eyes. Then, someone lays next to you. A friend who would be moving far away within the month, and who you had been growing so close to that you thought for a while that the two of you could date. Wordlessly they take hold of your hand and stare up at you. Then others begin to lay down joining hands with those around. Until all of you are staring up into the sky hang in hand...
This goes on for 10 minutes or more without change until something comes to your mind. You borrow someone’s phone, and after a quick search, Undella Town’s sweet song begins to play. Nobody questions you and nobody stops it from playing. You again join hands with your friends, bittersweet tears in your eyes, and for hours come you all lay there, holding on to what you’ll never get back.


Today, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. She has to go to chemo treatment in a week, and is going to lose her gorgeous hair that goes down to her elbows. Everyone is trying to be strong but I can see the way everyone is breaking down a little on the inside. We’re all scared we are going to lose her. Scared that if we blink, we’ll never see her again.