Julianne said goodnight to the same sunset each day. The orange beams laying across the horizon, dodged by the flock of birds dancing in the sky. And, she liked it. It was peaceful each night that she needed it to be, and it never let her down. For Julianne, moving to the lake had been hard. She missed the city where all of her friends lived, and this she did not know why. Unlike this sunset, her friends did let her down. Countless times. Living at the lake over the summer helped her to realize that it wasn’t solely them, but herself most of all. The version of herself in the city was not who she needed, yet remained who she wanted. This, she did not know why. When the sun says goodmorning, Julianne goes sailing. She loved to sail, mostly to follow the birds. To follow the wind, because maybe she’d find someplace. The place, for which she endured all this pain. All this confusion, and the tears she doesn’t even feel pool in her eyes anylonger. The tears that simply flow, like the creek under the city lights she used to lay under. Lost, confused, but accepted. Maybe that acceptance was fake, and maybe Julianne knew this; and maybe it was awful that she didn’t care either way. The rain was different here. It wasn’t skipping down the town square with her friends in matching boots and coat, latte in hand. It wasn’t returning home immediately after, wondering why she couldn’t escape this feeling of emptiness. Wondering why she had ever skipped in the first place. She didn’t mean it. That wasn’t how they made her feel. Then came the tears again, uncontrolled, unprevented. Instead, the rain was pitter patter on the single window in her room. It was wrapping up in a blanket on the porch, latte on the coffee table. This latte was better. Julianne would accept that one day. She wondered when. When would these days be ones she simply remembered, rather than endured. She wondered when the sun would say, “Goodmorning.” And she would be free. She would sail, and she would know where to go. She would know a place, and she would lead the birds this time. But, until then, she had the sun no matter what. To say “Goodnight.” And the sun never let her down.