Marit is a charming, delicate writer, Her skilful writing feels like running your hands through pure cotton. I read her work as I would treat an egg. This exquisiteness is what drew me first to her. She tells me this short piece on life and living is not inspired by a moment or memory. But by a feeling. Just hear that…You’ll like this one.

Read this as if you are imagining something nice happening to you with your eyes closed, because the subject of this story is you.
You are like this leaf, whirling in a great big white, unexplainable bright white. And as you whirl, delicate lines are being drawn around you: you see sketched buildings, the skyline of a big city you once treaded in, your dear friends on a pavement, waving supportively as you frisk.

And though you feel the heat of the sun in your face, you are excited, and you play catch me with the wind. Dancing in circles and finally feeling free from the life you are used to. Some people desire wings to fly away, but as a leaf you don’t need wings: you will lift and fly along wherever the wind takes you. You don’t know it’s path, but you are confident that that is the way you should follow.

You have been a budding leaf on a tree once. You have been a swaying one too. You have been a pile of leafs at the bottom of a tree. Rains have pushed you down and footsteps have crushed you as you turn brown and worn in autumn. Your life feels dependent on the choices of others but you are happy. It feels like adventure you waited all your life to experience once your tree would let you go was finally here. You knew that life was safer hanging high, but better letting loose. But as a leaf you are not in search of the big picture, the bigger plot, or a purpose, because you are purpose in yourself: telling seasons and times effortlessly but boldly, your green taking on various shades of yellow, red, orange, purple, black, brown.

I would be jealous of such deliciousness if I were you, though per time, being this leaf and recognising it when I look at others, the changes often feel like confusion. Thankfully, seeing other leaves fill me with thoughts that maybe real purpose is unclear, that we are similar in many ways. In fact, we all have something in common which is often said to be our green, our humanity, our core. And there’s that one purpose to make it a taste of heaven and truth no matter the season;
A peaceful life, a life on your terms, a good life, a life at your pace, a spectacular life, a happy life.

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Marit Buddenbaum, is a 23 year old born and bred in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, currently studying International Relations and Children’s rights.
(I have been both excited and extremely nervous to write a little something for Tope’s blog, because it is the first time I appear publicly/on the web with any piece of mine haha.)
This summer I will travel to Irbid, Jordan to teach English and Sports at a Children’s Village, right after I say I do (Yes, I had to stylishly drop that, I’m getting married this summer!! Yay!!)