Arguably, one of the greatest feelings on the planet Earth is the feeling of being held on to, clung to-- I'm not describing it quite right though. It is the feeling of being the world to someone else-- even if it just for a split second or a split moment. And in that moment, it means the world to you that you can be the world to somebody else. It is a wholly infinite feeling... and it is rare when you get a truly authentic hug.
There was one day, when I was teaching parent tot swim lessons... a little girl named Kya-- not more than two years old waddled up to me as I knelt beside her, soaked with pool water, (looking disgusting) in my swim suit. She didn't say a word. She just threw her arms around me and laid her head in the crook of my neck, on my shoulder. And we just stayed there. For seconds, minutes... I thought that someone would yell eventually... a swim instructor, my boss, a lifeguard. But no. They understood. And for that moment in time, I realized that by being the world for Kya in this one moment, I felt needed and important, and loved. It sounds ridiculous, but I truly believe that in that one moment that little girl gave to me what nobody else could.
As I leave for college, I feel more and more these moments of infinite calm and inner peace when I hug my good friends and bid them adieu. From Washington to Illinois to Michigan to Kansas. There are so many miles and miles in between. Those last hugs mean so much more.
I will miss my good friends here-- it is always a challenge to find quality friends all over again and start from scratch. I am confident that I will keep these lifelong friends though and hopefully share moments where they can mean the world to me, and I to them.
-Girl Beyond The Rise
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