Death, Age 3

I realized the consequences of death from a children's television program.

How it happened is just a series of vignettes. I was three years old. There was a colorful border on the screen. In the border was an innocuous image. A newly planted tree. A freshly pressed plaque. A memorial plaque. For someone who was once loved and now no longer here.

The next thing I remember was looking for my mom. I found her tidying up, as she does. I hugged her and held on.

The message that night wasn't that I would be gone one day but rather that I would one day experience loss. Loss of everything that I had. And at that time, all I had was my family.

From the Shore

This is my first memory of the shaking sea. Not a gentle movement, but a destabilizing wave. I was young and had no way of know what was going on. I did my best to find the shore again. And I did. I got there with the only tools I had at the time. Children's tools. It's amazing how long we use those poorly built patterns. But that's another story.

Your Move

What is the first thing that moved you?