She placed the basket down and began unloading pastries wrapped in ornate paper and striped string.

A rich aroma of vanilla and lavender wafted into the air.

The day’s light was waning and the tall grass around us awakened with a symphony of crickets.

She said that I may choose only one dessert.

The one wrapped in purple paper accented with gold leaf caught my eye.

Without me indicating, she immediately handed me the pastry.

She asked if I ever take the time to watch the cosmos.

I gave a hesitant reply of “not since I was young”.

She said that “it is only in contemplating our insignificance that we are able to realize the importance of each moment”.

I unwrapped the pastry and found a small piece of cake carefully topped with pale peach coloured icing.

She told me that “the chemical baked into the cake would relax my heart and put it to sleep”;

I savoured each bite, moist and rich with the flavour of fresh peaches.

I laid back into the grass to become absorbed into the whirl of galaxies overhead.

To lose myself to the place from before I was born.