This article was written for Leressa, an online store and e-zine based in Australia. It was published on the 14th of February 2013, in light of St. Valentine's Day.
LINK HERE.

This Valentine of Mine This Valentine’s, as we embrace the loves in our lives, may we also remember the ones we used to love.
I fell in love with you for the first time when I was thirteen; it’s not that the past years were spent emotionless towards the people around me, this was different. I felt something, for someone outside my circle of friends and family. You were well reserved when we first met. Polite and cautious about where this might bring you. Then there was the innocent physical activity of hand holding, kissing and boldly proclaiming our love for each other like we knew what it was all about. At that moment I felt as if we were both let in on a secret, that most innocent thirteen year olds did not know; love.

But at thirteen, who knew what love really meant?

The longer we stayed together, the more responsibilities were thrust our way. People were saying that love, at this age, is not as real as the love you would experience when you’re ‘ready’. We knew then- it was not going to work out; we had many more years ahead of us to experience so many other things. So we parted ways.

As the years went by we grew more distant from the thirteen year olds we were. By the time we were sixteen, we had forgotten each other; what we used to share.

But that reminder came one night when a phone call from a good friend informed me of your passing. I was heartbroken and spent the whole night thinking about everything we used to share; and secretly thanked you- as we sent you off a few days later.

Everyone has that first love; the one who broke their heart, changed them, or taught them how to love or better still- have stuck with them for years. I will always be thankful for mine, and I hope that you will too.

Labels: personal work