I found this quilted heart while I was walking in the Arboretum going back to campus. It was really good timing— a gentle sign of love and positivity— because I was just coming back from reflecting on my time in university since I just recently graduated. It’s also my last day in town before I move back home, so I was feeling very nostalgic and bittersweet about leaving college. Though a lot of my quiet reflection was reminiscing on all the memories I made, anxiety and doubt over the future weighed heavy on my mind. Uncertainty about myself, my abilities, my relationships and just the future at large. Not only will this heart serve me as a reminder of all the memories, lessons, and growth I experienced in college, but also a source of strength and hope as I navigate a new chapter in my life.
Thank you so much for inspiring hope within me again. It’s really been a beautiful thing to grasp after feeling lost in time to both the past and the future. It’s reminded me to cherish all the little moments in life. So, it’s so fitting to stumble across this heart in the Arboretum, where it’s easy to really enjoy the present in the comfort and tranquility of nature. Many thanks again for this reminder of hope and wishing you all the best!
I also wanted to leave this post with one of my favorite quotes from Victor Hugo’s Hunchback of Notre- Dame: “Spira, Spera” (to breathe, to hope).
