My Dear Art,

(heavily inspired by golden_eagle's post "My First Love" thank you to them for that wonderful bit of insperation!) 
my first love
was art
the colorful smudges of restaurant crayons on paper napkins
and the smell of crayola washable markers
oh the memories
the colored swatches of construction paper
and small, dull scissors that never quite fit anybody's hand
the way it felt
to brush my hand across a page
and see a path of vibrant yellow, or blue follow my every moment
the pride that swelled in my chest when i showed off my work 
to the loving eyes of my parents
and grandparents on occasion
the happy child who danced around the kitchen
and liked to draw animals
who fell in love
with the endless possibilities that one page and a pencil could bring
and held tight to them beaming with joy after accomplishing a scribble i would now look back upon 
and laugh at lovingly
for my own lack of skill
and pure innocence
they say that first loves never quite loose their brilliance
and i guess that their right
for i have never quite left my dear art
and it forever continues to brighten my life.