That sweet, thoughtful man took me on my first overnight backpacking trip and he blew the top off my expectations.  He packed me a fire.  He packed me morning coffee.  He packed me wine and appetizers and chocolate.  The weather was summer, the mountain was still buried in winter, and the combination was borderline magic.  It was an introvert's paradise.  It was a slow-processor's dream.  We walked through the most beautiful parts of earth, we played hours of cards, we sat quiet next to each other and we didn't need to fill it.

On the way down I recited the passage I've been working on and together we picked it apart, measured ourselves, tossed our struggles and our victories around.

And then that boy took me to a sushi dinner, sat with me on the beach, and went to bed late with me and for a minute I heard the garden echo in my heart: it is good.