“You can walk the coast and never get lost,” she said,
as we traipsed down the beach
and talked about random things
irrelevant things
with the sun at our backs
the wind at our sides
the world at our feet.

The day tasted sweet in a way I couldn’t recognize
as I couldn’t recognize the houses we saw
the children that played
the birds overhead.
Nothing was familiar
but we weren’t lost.
“We just need to turn around to return home,” she said.
Still we went forward.

The things around us were different still:
a new neighborhood
different trees
the sun was lower in the sky.
My legs got tired
but the communication was strong
and she was able to continue.
We continued.

The world remained at our feet
but the world was not one I knew.
I can’t say if she knew it, too.
There were buildings
where there had been houses.
Birds had been replaced by bears.
Ships could be seen on the coast now.
Despite her claims
I felt very lost.
Our walk went on.

We got to know each other very well.
We did not stop along the way.
I say I was lost
but the path before us was clear.
We went ever forward
with a clear destination:
ahead.
It became clear
somehow
this is what she had meant.

“We’ll never get lost
because we’ll never go back?” I asked.
“I didn’t think that was a surprise,” she smiled
and we continued on
into the sunrise.