The first time I fell in love
was not with a
boy
nor a girl

it was with the world

I remember that tight, unsettling churning in my gut
the same kind I got the first time a boy planted one right on my mouth


But it was before,
when my feet graced shorelines
and waves invited me inside for tea
I remember hugging a tree ironically
but in that gesture, breathing for the first time
freely
It was unplanned,
holding hands with mother earth
her bounty filling me up when I
did not know I was empty
flowers adding blush to my face
where the snow had flushed it
and the sun had left speckles,
I was drawn to her curves
climbing her moutains and
feeling her breath in sync with mine
in real world time
I fell in love with the sky
she cried into the sea
and I swam in them
strokes to carry myself to her beaches
her arms wrapped around me
and filling me with her bounty