NOVELTY OF FIRST TIMES

I like to capture the serendipity of novelty with what I call the thrill of the first time. You know, the first time you see that very interesting movie with all the right ambiance.

The first time you met a really interesting person in the most unlikely place. The first time you had the meal that was going to later become your all-time favorite meal.

True, there are many firsts we don’t remember consciously, like the first time we opened our eyes in this world, and the first time we’d close our eyes in death(duh, like there’s gonna be a second death).

The first time you fall in love with someone(this is one of those firsts that can happen over and over again in different ways) but I mean the first of the first, that first butterfly in your belly feeling… the moronic smile for no reason, the daydreams…

The first time you hop from city to city on a vacation or “baecation” the first time you ever entered an aircraft, the first time you saw your first Christmas shoe in a box. The first Christmas you can prologue as your tale of holiday specials. The first time you ever had to dress flamboyantly.

Your first kiss as a child pretending to be mom and dad. The first words in the pages of your first book. I personally think for books; there is always a first time.

The first time you browsed through the new phone you’ve desired for a long time and saved up for. The first time you stayed by yourself in your apartment. The first time you resume college.

Some aspirational firsts; like, first time you walk down the aisle, see your baby, drive your car, step into your home, first legit kiss, first taste of cold stone…

It is a never-ending line of firsts. The thing about the novelty of the first time is, as you are experiencing it if you are not conscious enough; you won’t savor the aura, vibe, and atmosphere and next time when you try to recreate the mood, you’d just realize that you cannot “recaptulate” (my word, used to describe a feeling you want to capitalize on but cannot recapture accurately). That’s why I’d succinctly phrase it as; the thrill of the novelty of the first time.

It’s like womanhood for the first time, you can never go back to the ante but the second time cannot be compared to the first.

When I came into the cognizance of this reality, I became intentional about first experiences.

If you are like me that likes to tell the perfect story in a singsong voice with all the right atmosphere and theme, you’d know just how important this is.

Ergo, when I conceive a first time, I prepare to savor it or if I catch myself in the middle of a conceivable memorable first time, I pause and soak it in. This is a lot easier with movies. Once I start a movie and vibe… I quickly rearrange myself, armed with the best possible snacks, and relish it… if I have gone too far, I rewind and start all over again. Too bad we can’t do this with all the events in our lives.

This post may be melancholic in that, we’ve all experienced firsts that we weren’t intentional about and can’t recreate but that’s not the enthrallment of this post. It is about recognition. Capturing details of a memorable day to serve as a memorabilia of a beautiful story that is our lives.

It is about the awareness that all events in our lives weave a fable and a reminder about the need to be present in our narrative as we feel our hearts skip through the plots of life.