By Taylor Wolf | Social Media Editor

Dear Washington,

Even though we’ve only spent 13 of my 21 years together, I can honestly tell you that you are the only state that holds my heart — my complete heart. There’s just an addictive feeling that I get when we’re together — a feeling of absolute peace and infinite joy. I’ve had the great fortune to gaze upon your beauty for most of my life, but still, after all these years, it can render me speechless. You might be the most uniquely beautiful place I’ve ever experienced. While my favorite features of yours reside on the western, coastal region, I appreciate and admire your range of visual beauty. Two mountain ranges, the Puget Sound and natural freshwater lakes wrap up greater Seattle in the sweetest of scenic hugs while deserts, the world’s biggest lava plateau and a river valley uniquely define the eastern region. How do you just have it all? Even as some may find your ever-present, shadow-casting clouds a source of gloom, I find them endearing. Nothing is more tranquilizing and self-reflection-inducing than a cool, overcast day with a bit of rain and accompanied by some music.

Speaking of music, one of my favorite things about spending time with you is venturing downtown to Pike Place Market and being welcomed by a variety of street musicians and artists. From the pianist who has been playing in the same spot on Saturdays for the past 25 years to the young spray paint artist trying to pique the interest of tourists, I never tire of meeting and enjoying the craft of every creative who shares their heart and home with complete strangers every day.

I love that every time I walk down Pike Street and into the market, there is a mixture of artisans, farmers and craftsmen who have become regulars as well as those who are completely new to the scene.

The fact that I can travel 30 to 45 minutes in any direction and find waterfalls, mountains, a waterfront or lake, an urban center or miles of evergreens is the major element of your charm. Our ferry boat and seagull feeding dates will always hold a special place in my heart.

I do, however, have a small bone to pick with you. Your ability to always get me into a different local coffee house, sometimes multiple times in a day, has become pretty hard on my wallet. I would say that’s the hardest part about being together, but I guess, all in all, it’s a small price to pay for having the time of my life with you every single day.

I could really go on forever about the things I love about you, and I’m sure it seems like I do to people who spend enough time with me. I just can’t say enough how much calling you home has meant to me. The lessons I’ve learned, sights I’ve seen and people I’ve met have helped grow me into the person I am today and taught me a lot about perspective and how small we are in the beautiful, grand scheme of things. I guess I just feel this compulsion to share with people I meet. I think everyone should get a chance to be impacted by your cultural and scenic beauty like I have, so I’ll talk about how much I love you as long as I can.

Yours always,

Taylor

P.S. Go Hawks!

Taylor is a senior journalism major from Seattle.