The Dance of Spring

Maybe it’s that old saying “Spring is in the air” that applies here… As spring certainly is around, at least when I go by trees and bushed being in bloom and lots of daffodils and crocuses dotting their splash of colour throughout the landscape. Temperatures are falling back to winter it appears, but then we HAVE had a few warm days already, proper “lounge-in-the-park” days, even if, after an hour or two, you needed a jacket or a hot cuppa tea.

But love certainly is in the air! Or maybe I just notice it a bit more… I would argue that it’s probably the few warmer days that brought everyone out into the open again, warmer temperatures make it more bearable to spend a few more minutes outside exchanging affections. Or it’s just me who has started digging my head out of the layer of clothing and scarves, like a turtle, and who actually walks around with a bit more attention to what’s going on around me, rather than running as fast as I can to get into the warmth of my flat. All possible…

Whichever way it may be, yesterday on the way home I passed through the gates at the station, and started to make my way through the obstacle course presented by the mix of people rushing home, like myself, and people standing in the hall either studying the departure board to check for their train, or waiting for someone. A few meters in, by the wall of a shop, was a guy standing and waiting, scanning every person’s face that came towards him out of the gates. Then recognition flickered over his face, when a girl came up to him. A shy smile waved across his features, and he brought forth some greeting, I am sure (they were out of earshot), and she reached up to embrace him and kiss a hello on his cheek.

You could almost physically see the expectant and excited tension between the two. Date number two I would say, still not clear whether a peck on the lips might be the right thing, but certainly something they would’ve liked to do. And then went for the embrace instead, much safer, and won’t have the embarrassing consequences in case the other was not on the same page… They were obviously at the stage where they knew they liked each other, but were still figuring out how much.

All of this is of course just conjecture, I didn’t know either of them, and I could not hear what they said to each other, so my interpretation might be completely wrong. The reason why I come to this conclusion is that just a few months ago I was that girl. He (well, not HE as in this guy, but my (by now) manfriend) was waiting at pretty much the same spot, scanning faces, and the same as this guy only noticed me fairly late. The same as this guy, a shy-ish smile crossed his face, and the same as this guy he looked like the kiss on the cheek was only the second-best option. A few months ago it was me who opted for the embrace, and who jumped in on the cheerful-but-meaningless-greeting-titter-tatter-just-to-get-over-the-embarrassment-of-not-knowing-how-to-behave-properly-in-this-situation chat. I remember the feeling of excitement, of not knowing but hoping that this might be the right guy, with all his quirks and edges to fit around my quirks and edges. I remember the weird confusion I had, I guess everyone has, when at the beginning you are not quite sure of anything, and other than a vague liking for and attraction to the other person you are not sure how much you yourself actually like the guy. Yet.

Ah well. In my case it all turned out lovely and lovingly, as I now actually pass this spot every day, having recently moved in with manfriend. Watching this little scene just reminded me of the beginnings, and brought back memories of these warm fuzzy feelings, the excitement and the uncertainty, and the knowledge of how much more I have gained by now in these past few months, after I was part of this situation. Watching this just made me think of how cute those two looked, and how much more they will experience together in the coming days and weeks. And I wonder, back when I was there, when I was the protagonist of this little scene, I wonder if somebody watched us go through this same dance and thought the same thing, and remembered their own second date in turn? 

In my case it certainly had nothing to do with spring, as it was a cold and rainy autumn day. But the season is always the same when it comes to the spring of love. And I will better stop this little narrative right here, before I completely slip into tacky phrases and drown in sticky clichés. Whatever else it can be described as, this little scene was certainly cute, and it certainly made me smile. And I just really want to go home and hug my man…