there are days

There are mornings I wake up before the sun, and get to the nursing building just as it does. Papers and finals and walking these scuffed sidewalks to lunch with my classmates, the future of America's healthcare.

There are days I spend biking through the park. A swath of green between the school and the city. A hideaway for friends and lovers. A highway for runners and mothers toting children and commuters on bikes. The animals of the zoo are behind the fence and the river runs high and the light falls on me through the trees, reminding me why this place chose me.

There are afternoons I spend at wood laminate tables, drinking nitro coffee or lavender lemonade, surrounded by piles of scribbled notes or looking across into the face of someone I love very dearly. The sun hugs my back as I look for an open outlet. Listening to the laughter of the couple next to me, I write another flash card.

There are evenings I spend with friends outside the library, yelling at all our friends who pass to come grab a donut from the boxes we picked up for free. We talk while we're waiting. About camping and boys and the end of school and donut flavors.

And there are nights I spend walking downtown with my roommates to eat sandwiches and soup on the sidewalk and afterwards, to find dessert and lose ourselves in the game of life, pretending that real life is so easy, but thankful that is's actually much more rich and good.