my monday was magic because I asked for help (which is normally really hard for me to do), got movement, tried a new dinner recipe, and met new friends at the gym:)

I love this question—as a serial monogamist since like, fifth grade (LOL) I really thought that my answer would be one of my first partners, or even one of my more recent partners that helped me learn about love... I found myself surprised that it wasn't. and honestly, really grateful When I was a sophomore in college, I recently got out of my longest relationship of three years, and I found myself (unsurprisingly) unsure of who I was and what I enjoyed outside of having a partner. My schools outdoors club advertise a trip to Shenandoah national park as a backpacking excursion for the week of spring break. In my identity, crisis, with no backpacking/camping experience, I decided to go. that was the first time in my life that I realized that I was an adult, I had the capacity to dream about travel and I had the free will to book a trip and go. So short story long, I think my first love was freedom and independence, mainly to choose the places I wanna see and the spaces I wanna be in, especially those outdoors, but it was really the idea of being able to get on a plane or in a car and not have to ask for permission anymore. That felt like the first time that I felt like i was allowed to dream, and had the time to dream about places that excited me and honestly think about what types of spaces that I wanted to see, did I wanna be in the quiet outdoors, did I want to be in the city around a lot of people, did I want to see any famous landmarks? I just think that it was this combination of freedom independence, and dreaming that I fell in love with that allowed me to have this deep appreciation for myself and others and humanity and all different types of places. It was such a gift. Since then, I feel like I have found so much self-love in working hard, and having goals, so I can afford those experiences for myself. It gave me the courage to achieve goals that I've dreamed of, such as moving to Denver by myself across the country:)