Out of the Woods

by Hannah Bonam-Young

Out of the Woods is my love letter to all of us who met their soulmate before they had the chance to fully meet themselves. I wanted to write a story that reflected the delicate dance of being madly, deeply in love with your significant other but desperately seeking independence, evolution, and change.

He is my steadfast, easy, contented man. Something solid in a world that constantly seems to shift on its axis.

And isn’t that all we ever want? More memories with the people we love?

I am a simple creature, at my core. Give me books, sunlight, water, and a handsome man looking at me like I’m some rare jewel, and I’m all set.

“Often, we can find ourselves playing what-if instead of recognizing what we can do now to build the life we want. The truth is the past is one of the only things as stubborn as us humans. Unfortunately, it won’t change no matter how much you ask it to.”

I begin wondering what is worse: being overly familiar with each other or fading into strangers who used to know it all. I think it’s definitely the latter.

“If you give me the space to grow, I’ll plant myself next to you. Always.”

“I want you to understand that you can be anything but not everything. And, sometimes, you have to make a choice for yourself, right or wrong, before life makes it for you. I don’t want you to let anyone tell you not to try just because you might fail. Failure is simply an opportunity for those who have time. And you will have so much time.

I wish I could tell that little girl that there was not a single gift under any tree that would ever be as good as lying next to her mom that morning.