today i am driving alone down these familiar streets. the windows are rolled halfway down, and it's difficult to remember a day without the sweet california breeze running through my unbrushed hair. i squint at the sun casting patterns across my browned shoulders and realize, for the first time in my life, i am truly and simply happy. i am racing the birds and chasing wisps of dreams as I always have, but suddenly i am catching them and i marvel at their reality. i stretch and i smile and my skin feels like mine. i am overwhelmed by the realization: this is what it is to be young and alive. i take a photo in my mind, close my eyes while it develops - the colors vibrant and energetic in my mind. there will be many days like this in my future, and i am comforted by the thought. i want to remember this simplicity forever.