- the trouble with gravity -
There were things she was learning about Earth. Her body felt sluggish, slowed and weighed down upon as if the planet were playing for keeps. Her hair tugged at her scalp; her clothes pushed down upon her shoulders. Pulling her feet up to step required a significant more amount of energy for less of a cheerful bounce. But it was the only part of her that felt dampened by her environment; her senses were singing. Things were more vibrant, colorful and varied. The iridescent plumes of some birds contained within a single feather a broader spectrum of color than the entire Moon— it was a celestial body very fond of whites and silvers, after all. Scents were heady and strong. The star was certain that pine trees drank in the rain in envy if only so that their own needles could mimic the scent when they fell.
And the air trembled with wishes.
She could feel them— the trees, the rocks, the people and bears— wishing in their hearts, in their bones, in their petals. Celestial beings were not so brazenly open with their desires, and the breeze on the moon held no unspoken messages. Earth, however, was a place uncensored. Even the silence was deafening. Rolling her jaw, the star surveyed her surroundings, furtive glances cast toward clusters of trees and rustling bushes. It had been a day or two since she fell from the sky. No broken bones or foggy thoughts had been gained from the experience, she had noted shortly after awaking, only a bruised bottom and a bemused expression. So once she’d come to the conclusion that it was indeed Earth that had become her temporary abode, the star had begun tackling the basics.
Like walking.
More gravity, more problems. The stumbling, bo-legged steps she took were embarrassing. The tumbles, more so. She walked with arms outstretched, legs a-shaking, and an expression that very melodramatically stated that falling would lead to certain death. Finding that millennia alive didn’t seem to lessen her pride, the star checked her surroundings once more before trying to walk again.
