“I think I just met the happiest person in the world!”

Dave looks like a sparkling fountain of emotion; shining eyes, huge smile, and practically bouncing on his heels.

I smile and sigh, turning my chair away from my laptop to show I’m listening. “Is that so?”

“Yes,” Dave affirms. “And she’s a girl.”

A flood of little siblings suddenly pour out of other rooms, nearly drowning my cousin and I. A torrent of questions (“You met a girl? Is she pretty? Are you getting married?”) overwhelm themselves and, before long, the storm of youth passes on to the backyard, like a wave that’s receding before it’s even finished crashing onto shore.

I turn back to Dave.

“I met her because she was reviewing our team’s project proposal for the city, and she’s super good at her job, but I’m telling you, she has the best sense of humor! And she thought I was funny, too! She thought everything was funny. She barely stopped laughing! And she’d thought I did a good job drawing up the plans for the project, so she said she only needed me to come back in the future, to get things going, you know. I had so much fun. I’ve never seen someone who can look at the positive like she can! It was amazing! And she’s so pretty - she has the most beautiful smile….”

Watching Dave talk about something he’s passionate about is like looking at a finger painting done by a prodigious kindergartener. At first, it’s just cute, but the longer you look at it, the more you perceive and feel the emotion and intention that went into it.

Dave doesn’t stop talking until he’s positively ran out of breath, and then heads for the door again.

“Where are you going? You just got here!”

“I invited her out! We’re going to get pizza, and then to play paintball!”

The door shuts. I sigh again. That’s Dave, in and out. The next time I see him, he might have traveled the world. It’s not everyday you find someone on his level.

I can’t help but laugh in spite of myself.

Those two are going to be trouble.