Sky Blue

Scents have long been associated with memory.

A little coconut and salt air and you can see the beach from behind a child’s eyes again.

Fresh baked cookies and you feel comforted by family members that has passed.

The smell of black licorice.

That awful memory of drinking from that green bottle as a young adult.

My memories come in flashes of color, not smell.

Like the moment Dorothy left her gray life behind.

The first glimpse at the shades of orange and pink as the sun rises.

The vibrant tropical colors of Florida that replaced the gray skies and snow of home.

It started with my yellow raincoat.

Dripping and glistening from the afternoon thunderstorms.

The white polka dots on my red sundress.

Peeking out as my body craved air on the sticky, hot night.

Then I saw a color that instantly froze me.

I saw sky blue.

The color of your eyes and perfectly matched visor.

Sky blue is the color of that memory.

When time stopped, drawn out in slow motion.

When our eyes locked.

The color of that moment.

The moment it felt like we were the only two people on earth.

The moment I saw my fate unfolding.

I remember my smirk as I introduced myself.

How red your cheeks, full of food, turned as we locked gazes.

I remember how my body felt when I saw you.

An instant warmth and slight vibration, like standing under high wires.

I remember what word came to my ears, from an unconscious place inside me.

“Boyfriend.”

I knew, but what I knew I could not even comprehend.

Is love at first sight real?

Or is it just like they say, lust?

Perhaps a shallow vision of how the cute couple pictures will look on social media.

Or is it an even deeper knowing?

A direct line from one heart to the other.

One soul to another.

An unseen vine pulling you closer together.

Pulling you back repeatedly.

More than just love at first sight, it is the first vibration, the smell, a chemical reaction.

Is our story already written, and us simply happy to be a part of the story?

Are we characters following an invisible director?

Is it free will?

A choice you make.

Are we soul mates, living the same love story over and over, lifetime after lifetime?

We had spoken before that moment.

Pleasantries and planning.

The first sound I heard from your voice was annoyance.

An audible eyeroll.

I mistook you for another and you were not impressed.

I envisioned you as a young punk kid.

Yet you would be the man I built my home with.

Sky blue.

Your eyes like a miniature earth.

A tiny glimpse into how you would become my world.

I cannot say for sure if it was love at first sight.

But it was an instant understanding that we were meant to be in each other’s lives.

A little hint of destiny peeking out from the shadows.

Sky blue is the color that changed both of our lives forever.