These are the moments that have brought us to here.
To this spot.
To a place of belonging.

Here is where the waves tickle against the pier,
giving offerings of tranquility amidst the weary stillness
of a silent city.

For it is a smile from beyond that we are here.
It is Aspen’s gift of feathery fluff,
floating through the air to find its way to you.

And it is you
so focused on your individuality that you forget
about the nurturing grasp of those around you
who know who you are in the way a dog and tabby
know one another - a peculiar friendship
that softens the hears of those around them.

Serendipity is the solidarity of pressing play on an iPod
and discovering a new song that tastes
of the fragrant emotions you’ve felt before
but have not had the foreknowledge to search for.
Until now.

You are here in this moment.
And you do not allow this patch of pause
to take your breath away.

And yet it does
leaving you tired,
weak at the knees,
a slobbering, slick kiss
from that dog who,
for a moment,
tamed the tabby.