The expiration date

Everyone has come across this one particular situation. However, you would then agree that no one really gives it much thought until you eventually are bound to let it happen. Curious, aren’t you? Just imagine the following: you open the refrigerator and today, it flashes your mind to check if everything is still in order. So of course it would not be, since you quickly remember that it is about time that you bought a new stash of milk again. “How long has it been since I last drank some?” And there it is, lying there, sobbing in silence: the hopefully-not-yet-rotten carton of milk. Your biggest challenge of the day: it could have been consumed with no rush, slowly, delicately … But how you got it off your mind, for so many different reasons apparently. You search for the expiration date and doubt on whether you should feel lucky or rather displeased by what you see, because you just have enough time to drink it in one go, right before it turns unpleasant. An instant of hesitation as you ask yourself: “Do I chug it?" Yes, undoubtedly, for you do not seek to waste any… And you’ll regret it if you don’t.

“Soul meets soul on lovers’ lips”

Curious, aren’t you? Why this sudden change of subject and more importantly, what in the world does this quote have anything to do with bad milk? Absolutely everything, actually.

Time had passed since these two souls last locked lips and shared a passionate kiss. Life got in the way, commitments and responsibilities were on the agenda. It was never the right opportunity to dwell on the not-so far away past. Yet as soon as they rekindled, there was no need for big words or long stares to create this fabulous, sincere and powerful, clearly still irrefutable connection between them. This kiss was not sweet; it was the sweetest taste of mango. It was not romantic; it was the romance that could set the world on fire. It was not music; it was the music where one grasps right there and then, what “all that jazz” truly stands for. Simply thinking about this special kiss gives them the shivers.

When a moment becomes yours. When the outside world stops for you. When you can hold a feeling so tightly in your hands, almost believing that an emotion could suddenly be materialized. It is at times like these when it’s undeniable why desires and passion are worth… everything.

Then again, there’s a little lie in this extremely sensual, last encounter. Curious, aren’t you? The reason why it was never the right hour to dwell on the not-so far away past is because it had come the time to deal with the very-present present. That mind-blowing kiss might not have been their first, but it was certainly approaching their very last. Indeed, it wasn’t that long of a period since these two souls last locked lips and shared a passionate kiss. Only but a few if you measure it in days, but it sure felt like a lifetime seeing what this meeting would mean to them. Everything from the first second they gazed into each other’s eyes until the last instant they exchanged words was enclosed in that kiss.

“Soul meets soul on lovers’ lips”

You open the refrigerator and you could have a nasty surprise since there is a possibility that you might have exceeded an expiration date. You did not wish for that to happen, but things are the way they are. Only a short span left, you kindly accept the situation and ask yourself: “Do I chug it?” Yes, of course you will, undoubtedly.

And that is exactly how you approach moments such as these, when you have no choice but to bid farewell to someone you truly care about. Curious, aren’t you? You do hesitate. You want out. You only get distant. For the obvious reason that getting to the good-bye scene in such a full blow could actually kill you inside. You try to get it off your mind as hard as you can, but it’s inevitable. The thing is, will there ever be a good timing to say good-bye to someone you love? No one is given a guideline to exactly when and how this is supposed to happen… even when the date is long written on the calendar. So what do you do when the infamous day is near and you just have enough time to make it still pleasant? You chug it, undoubtedly: the heartfelt tears, the hurt, the sadness, the memories, the love… And before you can understand it, amazingly, there can be sweet good-byes, even if there aren’t any smooth tomorrows... You take it all in, you will regret it if you don’t.

”Why have an expiration date when everything seems so right?” Curious, aren’t you? Perhaps it is because this beautiful story was actually never meant to be, for so many various reasons apparently. You do not ever hope for milk to go bad, like you do not choose when and whom you fall in love with. You did not wish for that to happen, but things are the way they are. Milk turns unpleasant, and you grow in love – even how wrong or crazy it is, and even if it narrows down to eventually saying your adieu! Life sometimes leads you to very unpredictable, uncontrollable situations, and you will always end up wondering why there is something called choice and another named destiny. Truth is, both meet halfway when good-byes knock at your door. And you do the best within what’s in your power. Maybe you’ll look back and your adventure will seem surreal. Maybe you’ll want to reconcile with why-oh-why you invested in something… someone, when you knew since second one that it could not lead you anywhere but here?

But then, you’ll come to realize that the very unforgettable kiss, the memorable rainbow, the way the clouds moved – so gracefully felt, shared, absorbed, was yours until the end of time. And doesn’t that, in all fairness, somehow make it the very first kiss? Untouchable.

Singer Raul Midon trusts that “expressions of love, [we] can’t deny [them], even when we say good-bye.” Not so curious anymore, are you? It is at times like these when it’s undeniable why more than desires and passion, falling in love was worth… everything.