Did Your First Kiss Defy Gravity?

I'll never forget my first kiss.

It was Christmas Day and we'd had a great food and scrabble-filled time as usual. My mom's best friend aka my godmother had come and brought her children and a relative's kid, Joseph, who was visiting from Israel. He was older than me by a few years, and had the blondest hair and bluest eyes I'd ever seen. He looked like a model. To me, anyway. (Years later my sister told me he was not as smoking hot as I'd thought.)

At the end of the day, as was our custom, we went to the movies while the adults stayed back, as happy to get rid of us for a few hours as we were to leave. We chose a newly released action movie that year, but the show never mattered.

Joseph flirted with me the entire movie. I had no idea how to filrt back, but my heart raced with his interest. At some point, he leaned over the arm of the seats and kissed my cheek. When I turned to look at him, he touched his lips to mine and then he REALLY kissed me. 

I remember the two of us levitating above our seats, oblivious to the screen and anyone else in the room. We kissed until the movie ended and we floated down to our seats.

He went back to Israel and I never saw him again. We wrote for a little while but as these things do, it faded after a while. But he will always be the star in one of my favorite memories, and the person who taught me how to kiss.

I hope you remember yours as vividly. I'd love to hear all about it. I'll add responses to my next email (Unless you'd rather I didn't add yours.)  

trevann@trevannrogers.com 

Happy 2025. May we all collect new heart-fluttering memories. In a good way, of course.

Do You Believe in Magic

When I was young, my mom's yard was a paradise. It was lined with majestic trees, lush grass, and flowers. You could just see the love she put into those flowers.

The centerpiece of the front yard was a Mimosa Tree. It was stunning. I spent a lot of time with that tree, doing the usual things like sitting under it reading or playing, or working up my courage to climb it to the first big branch. 

I have a secret. I flew under that tree. Yes, I did! You don't have to believe me; it's true. I would grab hold of its thick trunk, and then jump up with all my might! Somehow, my body would stay in the air, perfectly horizontal. I would close my eyes and feel the breeze flow over my body. 

When I let go of the tree, I'd stay in the air for a few precious moments before I thudded to the ground. The fall knocked the wind out of me, but I didn't cry or complain.  I knew magic when I saw it.

I still do. Clouds are magical. Friendship is magic. Love, true and abiding, is magical. Babies, from conception and beyond, are magical. Heck, sometimes chocolate mousse is magical.

We're going to need all the help we can get as time marches forward. Lots of changes ahead, crises as well as opportunities.  We'll need  family and friends so that we can wrap ourselves in community. 

I'm glad I still believe in magic. Do you?