The park was full of people this day. The spring had conquered winter once again and the sunshine allured everyone out to enjoy it. Madison had taken up her running again, as she did every spring. Even though she kept training indoors during winter season nothing could compare to the feeling of running outside. This day she was training in a slower pace, and therefore had quite soft music in her mp3 player. It was a daily tradition she had made for herself, to alternate the music she listened to considering how she was going to run. The only thing she never changed was the loud volume.

At the outskirts of the park, right where Madison entered it she could see two young children playing. A woman she presumed was the children’s mother since the boys almost looked like twins and shared her ginger hair, sat on a bench a few feet away. The two boys seemed to be playing tag, but apparently their game was so exhausting from running and laughing they soon fell down on the grass. Madison could see the smiles on their faces. She used to play and smile like that too many years ago. Tragically, her older brother had been killed in a car accident two years earlier when he was driving home from Madison’s graduation party. She was still saddened when she thought about him. “Time heals all wounds” is how the saying goes, but Madison wasn’t convinced. Her parents left town when her brother died, but she didn’t want to leave for some reason. Nowadays she spoke to her parents perhaps once a month, sometimes even less. While she was thinking of her own family the children looked like they had started to argument about something. The smiles were gone and they seemed to be yelling at each other. The shorter of the boys tried to hit the taller one, but he was too quick to evade and hit back. The short boy now screamed loudly so Madison could hear it through her music. The presumed mother hastily walked towards the boys and broke up the fighting. The boys were apparently told off, and even though they seemed to be pouting the tall one hugged the shorter one. As a result of his actions, the shorter boy regained a big smile. She then again thought of her own brother. They had their share of arguments but as he died, she couldn’t remember anything but the kindness he showed her when they made friends again. Sometimes he even lent her his teddy bear.

As she continued down the trail her attention got caught by something in the corner of her eye. It was an old man who fed some birds. She had seen him feed the birds almost every day the whole winter. Madison wondered if the old man had anything else to do throughout the days. She felt sorry for him; it must be hard to get old. So much free time to do things you’ve always dreamt about, but a body and a mind that weren’t as sharp as they used to be. So you’d end up on a bench feeding birds every day. Madison then noticed the man lifted a cell phone. He talked for only a short moment before he got up and looked around. From his right a lady approached him. Her right hand was putting something down in her purse while her left hand was holding a leash. Beside her walked a furry little dog. The dog’s body language foretold the animal was excited to see the man. The woman’s face expression gave the impression she shared her dog’s excitement. Madison remembered the feeling of seeing someone important to you. How her heart skipped beats and the blood rushed like world’s greatest waterfall.

Madison left the old couple behind and ran along the trail further into the park. The middle of the park was filled with hanging willows. Beneath one of them sat a young man and a girl on a blanket. He wore jeans and a shirt with a hideous pattern. Madison couldn’t see what it was actually supposed to be, but to her it looked like the shirt was filled with distorted starfishes. The bright purple colour wasn’t helping either. The girl on the other hand wore a pink dress that went beautifully with her brown hair. The girl had a certain graceful way of moving as they finished up their picnic. The boy looked a little cunning as he spoke to the girl and reached into his pocket. He showed the girl a small jewellery box. Her face was shining and she clapped her hands. It was almost ridiculously similar to a scene from one of those stupid romantic comedies. Madison too got a little curious of the box’s content. She slowed down to try and get a glimpse of it. She could only see something sparkling, but the girls reaction witnessed she was more than happy with it. Madison sighed and realized she wouldn’t see what the jewellery was unless she got quite close to the couple, and that would just be weird. But out of curiosity she turned her head anyway and saw the boy slipping the piece of jewellery on one of the girl’s fingers. She quickened her pace and focused on her running again. She glanced at her watch. She was still following the plan. Good.

At the other side of the park Madison saw two girls sitting close together on one of the benches. One of the girls had a rather peculiar haircut with extensions in all imaginable colours. She held her arms around the other girl, who’s most distinctive physical feature was her really blonde hair. Perhaps it was due to the difference between their haircuts that made it so prominent. The blonde girl was crying fiercely. Her body was shaking and she probably needed the support from the girl with the extensions to sit up. The girl with extensions on the other hand radiated calmness and was stroking the blonde hair while holding the other girl. They sat still for a short while, until the blonde girl stopped shaking. The blonde girl looked like she made most of the talking, but the girl with extensions stepped in every now and then. Then at one point, the girl with the extensions grabbed the blonde girl’s arm and looked in her eyes with a very serious face and said something. The blonde girl started crying again as she tried to avoid eye contact. The result was yet another embrace from the girl with extensions. Madison didn’t see anything else as she now had passed the two girls. She thought to herself how amazing friends are.

Finally Madison reached her apartment and she yet again glanced at her watch. Right on time. She stepped inside, took a shower and made herself a sandwich. She turned on the TV, but nothing interested her. She sat down at her computer to see if anything interesting had happened on Facebook or her friend’s blogs. But it was nothing new that really concerned her. She sighed. Was this yet again going to be a night sitting alone at home, eating all sorts of disgusting things that made her feel guilty afterwards? She shook her head and tried to think of something less depressing. She thought about the people she had seen in the park earlier. The family with the two boys. She really missed her brother, and perhaps even more she missed her parents. It was a weird feeling, since her parents were still alive but there was no chance she could meet her brother. Maybe it was because of the insight they probably didn’t miss her as much as she missed them. If they even missed her at all. Madison then thought of the old couple. The joy of meeting a loved one. Someone to share your day with, and that would greet you with a smile. She tried to remember last time someone had smiled that way at her, but nothing came to mind. Her thoughts continued to the boy and the graceful girl. She thought about love and all the ways it was expressed. She couldn’t help but wonder why it seemed so hopeless for someone to want to spend their life with her. She looked down on her hand, only to conclude there most likely never would be a golden ring on her finger. At last she thought of the two girls. Friends are a great thing. They don’t just share you’re joy, but you’re pain too. They comfort you, help you clear your mind and always fought to keep you on track. Madison realized she didn’t have a friend like that. So there she was. She had no family, no one to greet her with excitement, nobody that loved her and she didn’t even have someone who would listen to her while she cried about it. But at least she could run according to plan.